Disarmament in Review
From June to August 2024, the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) carried out the second edition of the Youth for Biosecurity Fellowship Programme in the framework of its Youth for Biosecurity initiative. After having received a record number of over 2,500 applications, 20 young scientists from the Global South were selected for the 2024 Fellowship Programme.
From 12 June to 17 July 2024, the online segment of the Youth for Biosecurity Fellowship, which consisted of five webinars, took place. At the opening session on 12 June 2024, the Fellows were welcomed to the Programme by Ms. Izumi Nakamitsu, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for Disarmament Affairs. She encouraged them to act as force multipliers by sharing the knowledge and connections made through the Programme within their networks and professional spheres in their home countries and beyond.
During the webinars, the Fellows were introduced to the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) and exposed to a wide range of topics of relevance to the BWC, including developments in science and technology and the challenges encountered by BWC States Parties in implementing the Convention at the national level. Through direct exchanges with Geneva-based diplomats and capital-based BWC National Contact Points, the Fellows were able to gain insights into the status of deliberations in the Working Group on the Strengthening of the BWC. The Fellows also had an opportunity to hear various viewpoints of experts from academia, industry and civil society.
From 15 to 23 August, the in-person segment of the Fellowship Programme took place in Geneva in conjunction with the Fourth Session of the Working Group on the Strengthening of the BWC which took place from 19 to 23 August 2024. The BWC Implementation Support Unit and the Global Health Security Fund held briefings. The Fellows also visited the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), gaining firsthand insights into the work of the two organizations. At the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA), the Fellows engaged in a biosecurity diplomacy simulation game, which had been specifically designed for them.
Besides engaging with key stakeholders in Geneva, the Fellows also had the opportunity to go on a day trip to visit the Spiez Laboratory, the Swiss Federal Institute for NBC-Protection, where they learned more about the Laboratory’s work.
The Fellows also participated in a poster competition, introducing new ideas and initiatives to foster biosafety and biosecurity at the nation, regional and international levels.
Together with other youth representatives active in biosafety and biosecurity, the Fellows brainstormed on the formulation of new recommendations to the BWC community, following the elaboration of the Youth Declaration for Biosecurity and the Youth Recommendations for the Ninth Review Conference of the BWC.
The 2024 Youth Fellowship Programme was made possible with the financial support of the European Union, the United Kingdom and the Global Health Security Fund. In-kind contributions to the Programme were made by Switzerland.
