International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Overview:

The 2024 edition of the IAEA’s Climate Change and Nuclear Power report has been released, highlighting the need for a significant increase in investment to achieve goals for expanding nuclear power.

About International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA):

• It is the world's foremostintergovernmental forum forscientific and technicalcooperation in the nuclear field
• It is widely known as theworld's "Atoms for Peace and Development"organization withintheUnited Nations family.
• It works for thesafe, secure, and peaceful uses of nuclear scienceand technology.
• History: Thoughestablished asanautonomous organisation, independently of the United Nations through itsown international treaty,the IAEA Statute, theIAEA reports to boththe United NationsGeneral Assembly and Security Council.
• Headquarters: Vienna,Austria.
• Currently, it has 178 member states.
• Structure:
• TheGeneral Conference,consisting ofall members, meets annually to approve the budget and programs and to debate the IAEA’s general policies.
• TheBoard of Governors, which consists of 35 members who meet about five times per year, is charged withcarrying out the agency’s statutory functions, approving safeguards agreements, and appointing the director general
• Theday-to-day affairsof the IAEA arerun by the Secretariat, which is headed by the director general.
• Functionsof IAEA:
• The Agency works with its Member States and multiple partners worldwide to promote the safe, secure and peaceful use of nuclear technologies.
• Itapplies nuclear safeguards– consisting ofmonitoring, inspection, information analysis,and other activities – toverify that nuclear activities remain peacefulanddetect and deter their diversion, including to weapons-related purposes.
• In particular, the IAEAimplementscomprehensivesafeguards agreements mandated by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty(NPT), which serve as a first line of defense against nuclear weapons proliferation
• IAEA assists its Member States andpromotestheexchange of scientific and technical informationbetween them.
• IAEAenhancesnational, regional, and internationalcapacities to respond to nuclear and radiological incidents,which is essential to minimizing their impact