GENEVA, 22 April 2021 – The Philippines made voluntary contributions to the United Nations Institute on Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) and the Implementation Support Unit (ISU) of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) earlier this year.

These contributions will support the two Geneva-based institutions’ work on supporting multilateral disarmament work, which is crucial in maintaining global peace and stability.

The Philippines’ contribution to UNIDIR, amounting to USD 7,500.00, is unearmarked, which means that UNIDIR will have the freedom to spend it on areas it deems fit, thereby helping assure the institute’s independence.

UNIDIR, which supports states by producing independent, innovative, and evidence-based research that informs multilateral discussions, has organized forums and issued publications on areas that form part of the Philippines’ disarmament advocacies, including nuclear risk reduction, gender and disarmament, outer space security, and the threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), among others.

As a UNIDIR donor, the Philippines will receive tailored updates on the institute’s activities and the opportunity to engage on other strategic matters during the biannual donor forums.

Meanwhile, the country’s contribution to the BWC’s ISU, amounting to USD 10,000.00, is meant to support the ISU’s work on optimizing the BWC’s Cooperation and Assistance Database, which was established by states-parties during their Review Conference in 2011.

The Philippines had been heavily involved in developing the conceptualization of this database, which facilitates requests and offers of exchange of assistance and cooperation in accordance with Article 10 of the BWC.

These contributions were made on top of the Philippines’ regular contributions to the institutions and secretariats that support the implementation of the various disarmament conventions.

In its engagement in multilateral disarmament work, the Philippines has been championing global peace and stability, the primacy of international law including International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law, the centrality of addressing the needs of victims of destructive weapons, and building independent national capacities on humanitarian disarmament.

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