QNA/The Hague
At the request of Qatar, the conference of the parties to the convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons held in the Hague has renewed Qatar’s membership to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) executive council for a new term of 2014-2016.
The OPCW executive council consists of 41 members who are elected by the conference for a term of two years.
Each state party has the right, in accordance with the principle of rotation, to serve on the council.
The council is the executive organ of the OPCW and is responsible to the conference. It is required to carry out all functions and powers entrusted to it by the convention, as well as any functions delegated to it by the conference.
The council is the executive organ of the OPCW and is responsible to the conference. It is required to carry out all functions and powers entrusted to it by the convention, as well as any functions delegated to it by the conference.
In so doing, the council must act in conformity with the recommendations, decisions and guidelines of the conference, and must ensure their proper and continuous implementation.
It’s mandate is to promote the effective implementation of, and compliance with, the convention. It is also required to supervise the activities of the secretariat, to co-operate with the national authority of each state party, and to facilitate consultation with and co-operation among parties, at their request.
Among the most important of the Council’s functions are:
• Taking measures in case of non-compliance by a state party, including the submission of recommendations for action to be taken by the conference;
• Consideration and submission to the conference of the draft OPCW programme and budget;
• The draft report of the organisation on the status of implementation of the convention and the report of the council on the performance of its activities; and the making of a recommendation to the Conference on the appointment of the director-general.
