REVIEW OF THE RCA REVIEW OF THE RCA AGREEMENTAGREEMENT

2013 RCARO Workshop on Strengthening the RCA/RCARO Activities and its Efficiency, 7-9 August 2013, Seoul, South Korea

Alumanda M. Dela Rosa, PhDDirectorPhilippine Nuclear Research Institute

Outline Introduction

Brief History of the RCA and the RCA Agreement

Possible Amendment(s) to the RCA Agreement

Concluding Remarks

Brief History of RCA RCA - Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research,

Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology for Asia and the Pacific

IPA - precursor of the RCA. It is a tripartite cooperative agreement involving India, the Philippines and the IAEA: donation and installation by India of a neutron diffractometer in the PRR-1 ; training of scientists and technologists in physics (solid state physics, neutron elastic and inelastic scattering) from Korea, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, spanning 1965 - 1970

Brief History of RCA 12 June 1972 - the RCA was officially

established to promote and coordinate co-operative research and training projects in nuclear science and technology through the appropriate institutions.

Brief History of RCA There were 10 original RCA Member States.

India 7 June 1972 Vietnam 12 June 1972 Indonesia 16 October 1972 Thailand 04 December 1972 Philippines 17 April 1973 Singapore 06 September 1973 Pakistan 06 September 1973 Republic of Korea 09 October 1974 Bangladesh 20 October 1974 Sri Lanka 06 March 1976

Brief History of RCA

Australia, Peoples’ Republic of China, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, New Zealand became RCA Members later. Nepal became a member of the RCA in 2012.

Presently, there are 18 Governments Parties to the RCA Agreement.

RCA Agreement RCA Agreement - from 1972 to 1977. Thereafter, it

has been extended every five years. The Agreement was revised in 1987, and has been extended five times. Years of extension are as follows:  12 June1977 – 11 June 1982 12 June1982 – 11 June 1987 12 June1987 – 11 June 1992 12 June1992 – 11 June 1997 1st Extension 12 June1997 – 11 June 2002 2nd 12 June2002 – 11 June 2007 3rd 12 June2007 - 11 June 2012 4th 12 June2012 - 11 June 2017 5th

RCA Agreement Provisions of the RCA Agreement (1972)

Preamble Signatories are referred to as Governments Article I, Section 1: Governments agree to cooperate with each other and with IAEA

in promoting and coordinating cooperative research, development, and training projects in nuclear science and technology

Article II, Sections 2-7: prescribes the process by which a cooperative project within RCA come into being - from submission of proposal to the IAEA, notification by IAEA of other Governments party to the Agreement, negotiation among Governments, funding by the IAEA, and finally implementation by the MSs.

RCA Agreement Article III, Section 8: prescribes the activities of

the Governments to monitor the progress of cooperative projects/consider new projects during a meeting of the representatives of governments held in conjunction with the annual session of the IAEA GC.

Article IV, Sections 9-11: prescribes the Member States that may become party to the RCA Agreement, and the conditions when the Agreement shall enter into force, and the duration of the Agreement

The RCA Agreement was amended in 1987 Provisions of the 1987 RCA Agreement

Preamble: Governments changed to Governments Parties

Article I: Same Article II: Prescribes a meeting of

Representatives of Governments Parties to be convened by the Agency, at least once every year (para1), and the authority of the Meeting of Representatives (para2) [new provisions]

Amendments to the RCA Agreement Articles III to VI are equivalent to Article II of

old Agreement with the following additions: Article III - and criteria for approving proposals for

cooperative projects by the Meeting of Representatives

Article V: Prescribes the responsibilities of Governments Parties

Article VI: Prescribes the formation/functions of a Project Committee per cooperative project, to consist of one representative from each participating Government Party and one representative from the Agency

Amendment to the RCA Agreement Article VII: Prescribes the role and duties of the

Agency as RCA Secretariat Article VIII: Agency may invite any other MS or

international organizations for financial contribution for the coop. projects

Article IX: Same as provisions of Art.II, Sec.5, on compliance with the Agency’s safety standards, and activities shall only be for peaceful purposes

Amendments to the RCA Agreement Article X: Same as provisions of Art.II, Sec.6 where

other MSs can participate in the cooperative project , with the consent of the Governments Parties of the Agreement

Articles XI to XIII: same provisions as in Articles II and IV of original agreement

Basic Features of the Amendments The major amendments would be:

Provision for the meeting of Representatives and the authority of the Representatives

Clear provisions on the responsibilities of Government Parties in the implementation and monitoring of cooperative projects

Clear provisions on the role and duties of the Agency as RCA Secretariat

1987 RCA Agreement

There has been no amendment to the 1987 RCA Agreement. It has been extended five times since 1987

RCA Agreement vis-a-vis the RCA Guidelines and Operating Rules (GOR)

The GOR Manual states that the “text of the Agreement provides the fundamental framework and guidance for regional cooperation. It is the source document for any guidelines, operating rules and procedures needed to govern regional cooperation”.

RCA Agreement and the GOR However, it seems that the RCA GOR has “outgrown”

the RCA Agreement The principle of full autonomy and ownership is not

enunciated in the present RCA Agreement Important mechanisms of cooperation such as TCDC ; project

closure; roles and responsibilities of the RCA Chair/Committee of RCA Chairs/RCA Focal Person; establishment and operation of the RCARO and its SAC, etc., are not mentioned in the RCA Agreement although these may be implied in Art.II, para 2f, “to consider any other matter related to or connected with the promotion and coordination of cooperative projects ....”

Procedures differ from what are prescribed in the Agreement

1987 RCA Agreement

Proposal: Establish a Committee to study possible

amendments to the 1987 RCA Agreement

Concluding Remarks

As gleaned from the activities during the 40th anniversary celebration of the RCA, one can say that the Governments Parties have cooperated effectively and made use of resources to promote nuclear technology in the region and that MSs benefit from the RCA cooperative projects.

“Why change when it ain’t broke?” Nonetheless, the RCA Agreement is a living

document, and must precede/dictate the norms for all activities of the RCA MSs.

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