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Pillar 3

Action 53

Strengthen the IAEA technical cooperation programme in assisting developing States parties in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.

United Kingdom

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What has the NWS done so far (prior to the current Review Cycle)?

The UK has engaged in peaceful nuclear cooperation and supported developing countries in the uses, safety and security of nuclear technology for medicine, agriculture and power. This has been channelled through the IAEA’s Technical Cooperation (TC) programme or bilateral aid.

The UK reported that it has paid its Regular Budget and Technical Cooperation Fund contributions to the IAEA in full and on-time and made significant extra-budgetary contributions to support the refurbishment of the Seibersdorf laboratories, and in support of the IAEA's nuclear safety and security programmes which underpin the peaceful uses of nuclear technology. The UK reported in 2018 that it made a £4.1M contribution to the IAEA Nuclear Security Fund.

The UK reported that it plays an active role in multilateral organisations to promote the peaceful uses of nuclear technologies, including through the International Framework for Nuclear Energy (IFNEC), the Nuclear Innovation: Clean Energy Future initiative, the Nuclear Energy Association, and the IAEA. The UK’s national report to the 2022 NPT Review Conference set out in more detail the projects it has funded through the IAEA’s Technical Cooperation Fund (TCF) on Sterile Insect Technique, Renovation of the Nuclear Applications Laboratories (ReNuAL), Covid-19 response, Marine plastics, and the Marie Skłodowska Curie Fellowship Programme (MSCFP).

The UK states that it has continued to support the IAEA's Peaceful Uses Initiative (PUI) launched in 2010 through its contributions to the Technical Cooperation Fund (TCF), to which it has contributed more than £20 million and more than £6 million in extra-budgetary contributions since 2020. This includes work on marine plastic pollution, isotope hydrology and environmental protection.

What is the NWS doing on this action in the current Review Cycle?

The UK states that it has continued to support the IAEA's Peaceful Uses Initiative (PUI) launched in 2010 through its contributions to the Technical Cooperation Fund (TCF), to which it has contributed more than £20 million to the TCF and more than £6 million in extra-budgetary contributions since 2020. This includes work on marine plastic pollution, isotope hydrology and environmental protection. The UK also committed £1 million to Atoms for Food projects to boost food security and tackle global hunger in November 2024.

The UK is also part of a group of States Parties who have come together to initiate a new Sustained Dialogue on Peaceful Uses (SDPU) since 2022. We believe that States Parties can break new ground by working together to: bring in new voices and perspectives from across different specialisms; drive global awareness of how nuclear technology can address development challenges; and identify new opportunities for peaceful uses assistance. In February 2025, the UK delivered a Nuclear Dialogue in Kenya, convening regulators, civil society organisations and international experts to facilitate knowledge exchange on nuclear regulation and stakeholder engagement in Africa.

Sources

  • Statement by the United Kingdom. Cluster III: Peaceful Uses. United Kingdom Delegation at the 2025 Preparatory Committee for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (New York), 6 May 2025.
  • Statement by the United Kingdom. Cluster III: Peaceful Uses. United Kingdom Delegation at the 2018 Preparatory Committee for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (Vienna), 1 May 2018.
  • Foreign and Commonwealth Office. National report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland pursuant to actions 5, 20 and 21 of the action plan of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons for the tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty (London), 5 November 2022.

United States

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What has the NWS done so far (prior to the current Review Cycle)?

Prior to the current Review Cycle, the United States provided more than $390 million in voluntary contributions to support technical cooperation projects, a figure which includes $60 million above and beyond projects funded directly through the Technical Cooperation Fund.

Through these contributions, the United States directly supported a variety of projects across the globe, including, among others:

Implementing methods to trace oil and plastic pollution in marine waters;

Building capacity to detect, quantify, and reduce the adverse impacts of harmful algal toxins on seafood safety;

Continued development of a sustainable zone free of the tsetse fly in the Niayes region of Senegal;

Improvement of veterinary laboratory capacities in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa;

Strengthening food security worldwide by increasing crop production and soil fertility using nuclear techniques;

Advancement of education and training in nuclear medicine;

Enhancement of national capabilities to respond to nuclear and radiological emergencies in Africa;

Enhancement of the capacity of national monitoring teams in Africa to ensure early detection of zoonotic diseases;

Study of the possible impact of radioactive releases following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident;

Improvement of the control of radioactive sources in Africa and the Mediterranean region;

The provision of COVID-19 diagnostic testing kits.

What is the NWS doing on this action in the current Review Cycle?

    • ver two years between 2022 and 2024, the United States provided more than $50 million in voluntary contributions to support technical cooperation projects––approximately 25% of the total target share for technical cooperation during that time.
      The funds provided by the United States have helped support the IAEA’s technical cooperation projects, including the Rays of Hope initiative––which aims to provide cancer care to regions that lack sufficient funding or facilities for radiation treatment––and the Nuclear Technology for Controlling Plastic Pollution initiative, which leverages irradiation to develop new recycling techniques, as well as Atoms4Food, which supports food security efforts through nuclear science.

Sources

United States of America. "Actions 5, 20 and 21 of the Action Plan of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons: Report Submitted by the United States of America." NPT/CONF.2015/38. 2015 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, United Nations, New York, April 27–May 22, 2015. https://docs.un.org/en/NPT/CONF.2015/38.

United States of America. "Actions 5, 20 and 21 of the Action Plan of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons: Report Submitted by the United States of America." NPT/CONF.2020/47. Tenth Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, United Nations, New York, August 1–26, 2022. https://docs.un.org/en/NPT/CONF.2020/47.

International Atomic Energy Agency. Technical Cooperation Report for 2024. GC(69)/INF/6. 69th Regular Session of the General Conference. Vienna: IAEA, 2025. https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/gc/gc69-inf6.pdf.

International Atomic Energy Agency. Technical Cooperation Report for 2023: Supplement. GC(68)/INF/7/SUPPLEMENT. 68th Regular Session of the General Conference. Vienna: IAEA, 2024. https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/gc/gc68-inf7_supplement.pdf.

International Atomic Energy Agency. Technical Cooperation Report for 2023. GC(68)/INF/7. 68th Regular Session of the General Conference. Vienna: IAEA, 2024. https://www.iaea.org/sites/default/files/gc/gc68-inf-7.pdf.

France

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What has the NWS done so far (prior to the current Review Cycle)?

France states its full support for the activities of the IAEA Department of Nuclear Energy, which takes in particular the form of contributing expertise and financial resources. It has supported the IAEA technical cooperation programme through participation of its experts to activities and extra-budgetary contributions (around 4.7 million euros in 2022).

As part of the Technical Cooperation Programme, France welcomes around 30 trainees and 30 visiting scientists selected by the IAEA from partner institutes and industries, mostly coming from French-speaking Africa and Southeast Asia (Cambodia and Vietnam).

What is the NWS doing on this action in the current Review Cycle?

In 2024, French contributions to the IAEA technical cooperation programme helped to finance projects to support the safety of Ukrainian nuclear facilities and the development of nuclear medicine techniques in Africa and the Middle East. In 2023, France’s extra-budgetary contribution rose to 7 million euros and to 6 million in 2024. France contributed over 15,710,000 euros to the regular budget of the AIEA in 2025 and around 4,072,000 euros to the Technical Cooperation Fund. In 2025, France was the sixth largest contributor to the Agency’s regular budget.

It continued to host trainees and visiting scientists in its civilian nuclear research centres

Sources

National Report submitted by France. Report submitted by France under actions 5, 20 and 21 of the Final Document of the 2010 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (2022–2026). NPT/CONF.2026/PC.III/2. 7 March 2025, https://docs.un.org/en/NPT/CONF.2026/PC.III/2

Working paper submitted by France. France’s support for the International Atomic Energy Agency. NPT/CONF.2026/PC.III/WP.11. 5 March 2025. https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/n25/060/12/pdf/n2506012.pdf#:~:text=France%20is%20one%20of%20the,Technical%20Cooperation%20Fund%20in%202025.