Context
Various UNSC Resolutions since 2008 have recommended more international attention on selecting and empowering appropriate national POCs. The current system of nominating POCs was based on the need to promote 1540 implementation and enforcement at the domestic level.
However, per the information on the 1540 Committee website, as of August 2020, only 123 UN Member States (MS)had appointed national POCs. Moreover, the roles and responsibilities of 1540 Points of Contact (POCs) have not been defined, or confirmed, , by either the Security Council or by the 1540 Committee. The appointed POCs have, nevertheless, continued to perform some functions in the interim. Given the lack of any framework or specifications for establishing the responsibilities of POCs, the full potential of this portfolio is perhaps not being harnessed by the relevant member states. For instance, based on anecdotal research, the roles of national POCs range between functioning as “Post Office” (forward the requests from external actors to domestic actors and vice versa) or as a “Hub” (coordinating authority for all 1540-related activities in their country), with varying degrees of involvement in-between these two ends of the spectrum.
The 2020 Comprehensive Review of 1540 Implementation is moving forward on a delayed schedule due to COVID-19. This provides an opportunity for civil society to collect and present some data-backed recommendations for defining the roles and responsibilities of the POCs, to harmonize expectations from them at home and abroad, and to empower them so as to optimally contribute to strengthening 1540 implementation.
The Stimson Center, with financial support from UNODA, undertook a survey of 1540 National Points of Contact (POCs), to get data on:
- the tasks they perform (or have performed) to support 1540 implementation
- what support they received to assist them in the tasks they undertook
- what challenges they faced in performing these tasks, and
- if they have any suggestions that would assist future POCs accomplish more.
