Overview

The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC) was launched on 8 May 2002 and works to strengthen the capacities of national and regional stakeholders to control and reduce the proliferation and misuse of small arms and light weapons, and thus contribute to enhanced stability, security and development in South Eastern and Eastern Europe. SEESAC functions under the mandate given to it by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC). SEESAC liaises directly with governments and civil society, providing technical input, information exchange, coordination and overview of current and future efforts and fund-raising assistance for specific SALW projects. More specifically, SEESAC's regional activities include sensitizing governments and civil society on small arms issues, formulating national strategies for SALW control and supporting the national stakeholders in executing these strategies, as well as incorporating small arms issues into UNDP development planning. SEESAC’s activities are constantly changing to adapt to the current needs and capacities of the local governments and other stakeholders, currently focusing on: - Increasing regional cooperation, knowledge exchange and information-sharing; - Improving capacities for Physical Security and Stockpile Management (PSSM) through infrastructure security upgrades, surplus reduction and training; - Enhancing capacities for marking, tracing and record-keeping; - Reducing illicit possession and misuse of firearms through support for awareness-raising and collection campaigns. SEESAC work contributes to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 5 (on gender equality) and 16 (on peace, justice and strong institutions), combining strong in-house technical expertise with efficient and flexible project implementation to deliver concrete and measurable impact in making South East Europe more stable and secure.