The Director-General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Ambassador Fernando Arias, and the Mayor of the Municipality of The Hague, Mr Jan van Zanen, announced the decision of the OPCW-The Hague Award selection panel to honour three recipients of the 2023 OPCW-The Hague Award:
- Spiez Laboratory in Switzerland
Spiez Laboratory has made significant contributions to advancing arms control and international security through science, research, and analysis. The laboratory has been recognised for its high analytical proficiency as an OPCW designated laboratory, and has been a key contributor to the OPCW Central Analytical Database - the Organisation's reference library of chemical data. In addition, the laboratory provides trainings for inspectors and first responders around the world to enhance chemical safety and security.
- Dr Syeda Sultana Razia, Professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology and member of the OPCW Scientific Advisory Board (SAB)
Dr Raiza's work focuses on advancing capacity building in chemical safety and security. In addition, she has developed educational courses on topics related to the Chemical Weapons Convention.
- Mr Hubert K Foy, Founding Director and Senior Research Scientist at the African Centre for Science and International Security in Ghana
Through his work, Mr Foy has been advocating for the effective implementation of the Convention in Africa, including enhancing chemical security in African countries, and developing training courses for various stakeholders to raise awareness of issues related to implementation the Convention.
The OPCW-The Hague Award ceremony will take place on Monday, 27 November, 12:45-13:15 CET, on the sidelines of the Twenty-Eighth Session of the Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CSP-28). Both the Conference and the award ceremony will be livestreamed here.
"All three of these recipients have demonstrated that everyone has a role to play in ridding the world of chemical weapons and preventing their re-emergence," said OPCW Director-General, Ambassador Fernando Arias. "We must together strive to continue to ensure that toxic chemicals are never used as instruments of harm and that our populations are protected."
"The City of The Hague congratulates the winners of the 2023 OPCW-The Hague Award. This year's recipients fit perfectly within the objectives of the award: recognising individuals and institutions who have made invaluable contributions to a world free of chemical weapons. We are grateful for their efforts to making our world a safer place," said Mr van Zanen.
Background
In 2013, the OPCW was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons. To preserve the legacy of this achievement, the OPCW established the OPCW-The Hague Award in collaboration with the Municipality of The Hague in 2014. The Award recognises individuals and organisations that play a significant role in advancing the goals of the Chemical Weapons Convention. The total €90,000 cash prize is awarded to up to three recipients annually.
As the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention, the OPCW, with its 193 Member States, oversees the global endeavour to permanently eliminate chemical weapons. Since the Convention's entry into force in 1997, it is the most successful disarmament treaty eliminating an entire class of weapons of mass destruction.
On 7 July 2023, the OPCW verified that all chemical weapons stockpiles declared by the 193 States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention since 1997 - totalling 72,304 metric tonnes of chemical agents - have been irreversibly destroyed under the OPCW's strict verification regime.
For its extensive efforts in eliminating chemical weapons, the OPCW received the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize.
