NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION

40

joint activities
and projects

58

meetings organized

2

MoUs signed

11

Government outreach sessions & over 1000 attendees

FANR had an active period during 2020 regarding its national stakeholders’ relations, further enhancing its cooperation with the national entities to support its operation needs in addition to collaborating and delivering multiple joint projects.

During 2020, 40 joint activities and projects were delivered including system integration, cyber security measures, handling of orphan sources, inspections and training of different government official in radiation safety.

Over 58 meetings were organized during 2020 with multiple government entities for the purpose of benchmarking, exchange of information, emergency preparedness and building new relations.

Two Memorandum of Understandingwere also signed with Critical infrastructure & Coastal protection Authority (CICPA) & Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) to collaborate in the area of physical & Information security.

Due to covid19 pandemic restrictions in 2020, FANR introducedvirtual outreachprogramto different government entities as part of creating awareness about the FANRs’ roles and responsibilities and its regulatory activities.

11 Government outreach session were conducted reaching to over 1000 government officials including sessions to Government of Dubai, DP World, Dubai Customs, Department of Economic Development in Abu Dhabi in an addition to others.

16

joint activities
and initiatives

12

Bi-lateral meetings

4

MoUs and agreements signed

24

Technical meetings and workshops

FANR international cooperation activities during 2020 covered many technical workshops with the IAEA, international missions and bi-lateral meetings to discuss existing and future cooperation.

During 2020, 16 joint activities and initiativeswere delivered including training, knowledge exchange and literature review and benchmarking.

12 Bi-lateral meetings were conducted during 2020 to discuss multiple topics related to nuclear regulatory framework, research and other aspects to FANR roles and responsibilities.

4 international MoUs and agreements were renewedwith Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety – France (IRSN), USNuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC), Radiation Protection Computer Code Analysis and Maintenance program (RAMP USNRC), &Ministry for Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus (MES BLR) to cooperate in nuclear safety, security, safeguard, radiation safety, R&D, Emergency preparedness and other areas of mutual interest.

FANR took part in the 14th meeting of the Multilateral Design Evaluation Programme (MDEP) Policy Group in October 2020. MDEP is a multinational initiative to leverage the resources and knowledge of national regulatory authorities who are, or will shortly be, undertaking the review of new reactor power plant designs. In addition, FANR is taking part, along with other UAE entities, in Atlas-2 project, a research project that includes a number of tests and experiments to strengthen research capabilities.

FANR through the UAE Permanent Mission Office continued its cooperation with the IAEA and took part in multiple workshops and technical meetings as part of technical cooperation programme and the integrated work plan.

FANR hosted the international workshop entitled, ‘Emergency Transition and Termination in the UAE’ attended by international experts who have been dealing with real nuclear emergency situations to share their experience and discuss improvements to the UAE framework for emergency transition and termination. The workshop was attended by participants representing several national entities including the Ministry of Interior, Abu Dhabi Police, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Department of Health, the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority, and experts from the IAEA and the International Commission for Radiological Protection.

FANR also hosted the IAEA workshop on ‘Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage for Newcomer Countries’ during the review period. This event served as a platform to provide information to newcomer countries on the existing international nuclear liability regime, and discuss the development of the implementation of the national nuclear liability legislation. It was attended by 50 participants representing 22 countries.

More than 40 FANR employees were nominated to take part in at 24 IAEA-related activities in 2020 such as virtual workshops, webinars and committee meetings.

FANR participated at the 64th Annual General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) through the UAE delegation led by His Excellency Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure of the United Arab Emirates and His Excellency Hamad Alkaabi, UAE Permanent Representative to IAEA. Most of the UAE’s delegation joined the event remotely due to restrictions measures during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The UAE’s participation at the IAEA General Conference this year is marked by the country’s major milestone witnessing the start-up of the first unit of Barakah Nuclear Power plant back in August 2020, making the UAE the first Arab country to develop and operate a nuclear power plant.

FANR staff alsotook part in IAEA 64th General Conferencesessions during September 2020 including:

• Nuclear Human Resource Development in Asian Countries Embarking on a Nuclear Power Programme.

• The Link between Emergency Preparedness and Protection Strategy for Nuclear Emergencies.

• The Future of Atoms: Artificial Intelligence for Nuclear Applications.

The third meeting of the High-Level Consultation Committee on Nuclear Cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Korea (RoK) and the Government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) took place during Nov 2020. The meeting was chaired by H.E. Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure of the UAE and H.E. Lee Taeho, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Korea

The meeting aimed to review the milestones achieved in nuclear energy cooperation over the past two years, as well as discuss future opportunities for joint projects.

The UAE-RoK High-Level Consultations Committee on Nuclear Cooperation consists of three working groups: Cooperation on the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant and Overseas Projects; Nuclear Science and Technology R&D and finally Nuclear Safety and Security Regulation. Each working group has a joint programme of projects to strengthen nuclear cooperation relations, including sharing operating experience, cooperation in overseas nuclear energy projects, research and development, capacity building, cyber security, amongst others.

In 2020, FANR continued its cooperation with the Nuclear Energy Agency of OECD, an intergovernmental agency that facilitates co-operation among countries with advanced nuclear technology infrastructures to seek excellence in nuclear safety, technology, science, environment and law.

10 FANR staff member joined as members in 5 NEA working groups and committees working on multiples initiatives.

The current committees and working groups that FANR staff are actively involved in:

• The Committee on Nuclear Regulatory Activities (CNRA)

• Working Group for Public Communication (WGPC)

• Working Group on Human and Organizational Factors (WGHOF)

• Working Group on Inspection Practices (WGIP)

• The Nuclear Law Committee (NLC)

The year 2020 was a pivotal one in which FANR started its dialogue with the Saudi Nuclear Radiological Regulatory Commission (NRRC) to strengthen cooperation in nuclear regulatory matters under the bilateral agreement on the Peaceful Use of Nuclear Energy between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates that was signed in 2019.

The bilateral cooperation is planned to address areas such asnuclear safety, nuclear security, non-proliferation, legal and regulatory framework, emergency preparedness and response.

FANR and NRCC plan to further organizeworkshops and form working groups to exchange information and knowledge related to regulatory framework, radiation protection, nuclear safety and security as well as nuclear nonproliferation and emergency preparedness. It also agreed to discuss smart licensing systems and public communications.