The Gambia is one of only eight countries worldwide that has not yet submitted its mandatory report to the United Nations Security Council 1540 Committee. The other seven are North Korea, Somalia, Eswatini, Mauritania, Chad, Mali and Guinea.
Already 185 countries out of 193 have submitted their reports in compliance with this obligation.
Resolution 1540 of 2004 requires all states worldwide to take steps to prevent Non-State Actors from getting their hands on Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) – this can be biological, chemical, radiological or nuclear. It also includes material that can be used to make such weapons, which can be found in most countries worldwide.
In Section 4 of the Resolution all states are required to submit a national report to the UNSCR 1540 Committee outlining steps the its government has taken to implement the resolution.
The Gambia is, therefore, not on the list of the vast majority of States worldwide that have complied with this obligation – many of them years ago.
The United Nations is now calling upon The Gambia and these very few other States to meet this obligation which has been in place since 2004.
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