United Nations Department for Disarmament Affairs (UNDDA)

Name Mr. Nobuyasu Abe
Position Under-secretray general
Address Palais des Nations, CH-1211 Genève 10
Phone +41-22-917 12 34
Fax +41-22-917 01 76
Web http://disarmament2.un.org/dda.htm

Activity summary:

The Department for Disarmament Affairs (DDA) was re-established in January 1998 by the General Assembly resolution 52/12. The Department was originally established in 1982 - upon the recommendation of the General Assembly's second special session on disarmament ( SSOD II ) - and continued until 1992.
The Department promotes the goal of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation and the strengthening of the disarmament regimes in respect to other weapons of mass destruction, chemical and biological weapons. It also promotes disarmament efforts in the area of conventional weapons, especially land mines and small arms, which are the weapons of choice in contemporary conflicts.
DDA provides substantive and organizational support for the norm-setting in the area of disarmament through the work of the General Assembly and its First Committee, the Disarmament Commission, the Conference on Disarmament and other bodies. It fosters preventive disarmament measures, such as dialogue, transparency and confidence building on military matters, and encourages regional disarmament efforts; these includes the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms and regional forums. It also provides information on the United Nations disarmament efforts. DDA supports the development and implementation of practical disarmament measures after a conflict, such as disarming and demobilizing former combatants and helping them to reintegrate in the civil society.