The Permanent Mission of South Africa, in its capacity as the Co-Facilitator of the informal Working Group on Universalization of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), in partnership with the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), convened a lunch and meeting of the African Group to share recent developments regarding the universalization and implementation of the TPNW. Twenty African Union Member States participated in the event, along with African Union representatives. 

In the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, South Africa and Uruguay co-sponsored a high-level ceremony for further TPNW signatures and ratifications. Indonesia, Sierra Leone and the Solomon Islands ratifying the landmark agreement. There are now 73 states parties and a further 25 signatories.

The Republic of South Africa, as co-chair of the working group on universalisation of the TPNW, in collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and ICAN hosted the African Regional Conference on the Universalisation and Implementation of the TPNW for African Union Member States on 6 September 2024 in Addis Ababa, with the participation of Permanent representatives and experts - political and military - of 31 African states, along with African Union officials - from the AU Commission, the AU Directorate of the Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department, and the AU Legal Counsel and the African Governance Architecture /African Peace and Security Architecture (AGA/APSA) ; representatives of sub-regional institutions (ECOWAS, SADC and NARC) ; as well as Addis-based academics and African civil society groups from different sub-regions. Read more about the Conference here.

The informal working group on universalisation held a meeting during which the Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) presented its report to 2MSP, highlighting its findings and discussing risks and consequences of nuclear weapons, and links between science and universalisation efforts. The meeting was attended by 30 delegations - states parties, signatories and other supportive states - along with representatives of ICAN, the ICRC and the Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) representatives.

The informal working group on universalisation held a meeting attended by more than twenty states parties and signatories, as well as by representatives of ICAN, the ICRC and the Scientific Advisory Group (SAG) representatives. The working group co-chairs recalled the broad scope of promoting universalisation under Article 12 of the Treaty and a number of actions under the Vienna Action Plan, including bringing in new signatures and ratifications, as well as promoting the Treaty in various fora and highlighting its synergy with other workstreams. A tentative programme of work for the current intersession was introduced, with activities ranging from panels and symposiums with the SAG and on the security concerns of States Parties, the coordination of joint statements in the UN first committee and bilateral and regional outreach in collaboration with ICAN, the ICRC and regional institutions.

South Africa, in its capacity as co-facilitator of the intersessional working group on universalisation, in partnership with ICAN, convened a working session of the African Group in Geneva to share recent developments and to promote the universalisation of the TPNW ahead of the second meeting of states parties to the TPNW. Delegations shared updates about the status of their procedure with regards to joining the TPNW.