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Pakistan - Statement to the IAEA General Conference 2010

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54th IAEA General Conference, 20-24 September, 2010
Statement by the leader of the Pakistan's Deligation



Mr. President,

Please accept my warm felicitations on your election as President ofthe 54th session of the General Conference. May I also congratulate theVice Presidents, Chairman of the Committee of the Whole, and othermembers of the Bureau with assurances of my delegation’s full supportand cooperation. We are confident, Mr. President, that under your ableleadership, the Conference will achieve its desired objectives. We also wish to welcome the new IAEA member state - Swaziland, and look forward to working with them.

2. Let me take this opportunity to convey my sincere appreciation to Director General, Mr. Yukiya Amano, for steering the Agency and making avery determined effort to promote the primary mission of the IAEA. Wewish him all the success in his challenging assignment.

Mr. President,

3. IAEA's unique role as the world's focal point for promoting the peaceful uses of nuclear technology is assuming greater significance in thewake of the global surge in the number of countries wishing to embark ona nuclear power program. It poses a variety of challenges to the Agency interms of application of its resources particularly because most of the start-up countries look towards IAEA for guidance and support. We know thevalue of interaction with IAEA, as over the years Pakistan itself hasbenefited immensely from the expertise made available by the Agency in the form of expert missions, OSART and ASSET missions, and of coursethe Technical Cooperation programs.

4. In fact, the technical cooperation program of IAEA has broughttangible benefits to many developing Member States in the area ofpeaceful applications of nuclear technology. IAEA's assistance in humanresource development and capacity building in the developing memberstates has ensured impact and sustainability of this program. Pakistanstrongly supports the Agency's efforts in making its technical cooperationprograms even more useful more compatible with the changing andincreasing requirements of the Member States, against the odds ofresource constraints.

Mr. President,

5. As some member states exhibit a renewed interest in adding to theirexisting fleet of nuclear power plants, and some others wish to start a newnuclear power program, we may not underestimate the importance ofnuclear safety as it is only through safe operation of nuclear power plantsthat the future of nuclear power can be secured. Here again, IAEA's safetystandards and its guidelines are of utmost value to its member states,specially to the developing countries who may not have the resources orexpertise to independently develop a system of their own.

6. The Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington this year broughtan important focus on nuclear security issues. The IAEA has an importantrole in assisting member states in their national efforts aimed at promotingnuclear security.

7. Pakistan has established a strong and independent safety andsecurity infrastructure, including the establishment of an independentregulatory authority, the Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA), inthe year 2000. Pakistan is a party to several international conventions andactively participates in the nuclear safety and security activities andprograms of the Agency, including the Nuclear Security Action Plan.Pakistan is also contributing to the IAEA databases such as IllicitTrafficking Database, International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scaleand International Reporting System for Operating Experience.

8. The responsibility and function of the IAEA regarding safeguards andverifications are equally important — and have been growing insignificance. Striking a balance between its role as the promoter of nuclearenergy and its responsibility as the nuclear watchdog is indeed a challengefaced by the IAEA particularly in the wake of large number of aspirantcountries, and the limited resources available to the Agency.

9. We hope that IAEA will continue to maintain its principle-based roleto assist its member states on equitable and non-discriminatory basis inline with the Agency’s Mission Statement, i.e., realization of the right ofevery state to the peaceful applications of nuclear technology, particularlynuclear power generation.

Mr. President,

10. Pakistan has recently been devastated by massive floods. It has ledto a major catastrophe directly affecting not only the lives of more than 20million people, but also the logistics and economic infrastructure of the entire country. The people of Pakistan are grateful for the internationalassistance that came in response to these floods . I may mention here. Mr.President, that during all this time, our nuclear power plants kept operatingat full power.

11. In the backdrop of its limited indigenous energy resourceendowments, Pakistan has long been a strong advocate of buildingnuclear power plants. Back in 1965, when Pakistan signed its firstcommercial nuclear power plant, it was the 15th country in the world andonly the second developing country to start a nuclear power program. Thisplant KANUPP came on line in 1972. However, our second nuclear powerplant, the first unit at Chashma (C-1), came on line in 2000. It has beenbuilt by the China National Nuclear Corporation. This month C-1 iscelebrating its 10 years of safe and successful operation, and we arehappy for that. C-1 has been followed by C-2 built again by China under along term agreement between the two countries. C-2 will becommissioned in 2011.

Mr. President,

12. Pakistan now already has to its credit more than 45 years of safereactor operation experience and a technical and engineering infrastructureto maintain and provide technical support to these plants. This coupledwith the know-how in the areas of manpower training, energy planning,reactor siting, safety analysis, out of core as well as in-core fuelmanagement, and the existence of an independent and well developedregulatory regime provide the necessary ingredients to build a sustainablenuclear power program.

13. PAEC has also been participating in the IAEA’s International Projecton Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) since itsinception. We congratulate the IAEA for celebrating the 10th Anniversaryof this very valuable program.

14. The Atomic Energy Commission has been given a mandate by theGovernment of Pakistan to install 8800 MWe of nuclear by 2030. Pakistanfaces severe load shedding, we need to build more nuclear power plantsto alleviate the energy shortfall and to support our socio-economicdevelopment.

15. In addition to nuclear power, Pakistan has also focused onapplications of ionizing radiation and radioisotopes in the fields of health,agriculture and industry. The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commissioncurrently manages 14 nuclear medical centers across the country. Thesecenters cater to around half a million patients every year — most of themfree of cost. Another four centers are under-construction

Mr. President,

16. Taking advantage of the IAEA sponsored programs, a campaign hasbeen launched in the country for increasing awareness of “Growing CancerEpidemic”. October is internationally being celebrated as the “BreastCancer Awareness Month” and 25"‘ October 2010 has been globallymarked as the “Mammogram Day”. PAEC has active plans to use theseevents to increase public awareness.

17. Using its research reactor, Pakistan Atomic Energy Commissionindigenously produces most of the radioisotopes required for medicalpurposes. A Molybdenum production facility has recently been commissioned. This facility will not only meet the requirements of thecountry's nuclear medical centers and hospitals, but will also have sparecapacity for export to other countries.

18. With a sizeable nuclear power program, a well~trained pool ofexperts and decades of experience in the areas of power generation,health, medicine, agriculture, biotechnology and industrial applications,Pakistan is now poised to share its knowledge and expertise with upcomingmember states through training placements and expert missions.

Mr. President

19. The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission was established nearly atthe same time when the International Atomic Energy Agency was created,and the relationship between the two which is based on mutual respectand co-operation has grown ever since. We wish to continue thisrelationship on stronger footholds.

20. The admirable record of the Agency in its outreach activities is due,in large measure, to its leadership, to the efficiency of the Secretariat andthe work of the Policy Making Organs. The entry into force of theamendment to Article VI of the Statute when ratified by the requirednumber of states will enhance the representative character of the IAEABoard of Governors, thereby contributing to a more effective role of the Agency.

21. In conclusion, I express our deep appreciation for the valuableassistance provided by the Agency in the fields of nuclear technology,safety and security. My delegation firmly believes that the Agency should take larger initiatives to facilitate construction of nuclear power plants inMember States on a non-discriminatory basis thereby contributing to thesocial and economic development of these countries.

Thank you, Mr. President.

http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC54/Statements/pakistan.pdf
 
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