Protecting civilians through safe and secure ammunition management

Ammunition Management in Peru

Since 2019, GICHD’s Ammunition Management Advisory Team (AMAT) has been working with the national authorities in Peru to strengthen ammunition management systems and implement the International Ammunition Management Guidelines (IATG) across their armed forces. Through this work bringing the IATG to life on the ground in ammunition storage areas across the country, Peru is taking concrete steps to protect its people. The progress already made strongly positions Peru to be an example for its region and beyond.

Video: the IATG at Peru’s CEMUNE Ammunition Depot

Located 230km from Lima, CEMUNE is one of Peru's largest ammunition depots. It is at the centre of the nation's efforts to improve their ammunition management systems.

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Gen. Aldo Dominguez Peralta Head of Depot Maintenance of Aviation, Peruvian Army

Why Ammunition Management?

Accidental explosions of poorly managed munitions sites often result in high numbers of people killed, injured or displaced. More than a hundred countries faced such incidents since 1979, often with severe humanitarian and socio-economic consequences. As a result of inadequate stockpile management practices, substantial amounts of ammunition find their way to illicit markets through theft, corruption, pilferage and resale. In many cases, diversion from ammunition stockpiles has intensified and prolonged armed conflict and violence. Diverted ammunition may also be used to manufacture improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Lieutenant Colonel Nilo Sanchez Peruvian Army

Karina Hinojosa Legal expert, AMAT, GICHD

About Ammunition Management in the GICHD

In recent years, efforts have been dedicated to strengthening national ammunition management practices. At the policy level, ammunition-related issues are ever more discussed at global and regional fora, creating a conducive environment for countries to engage more openly in this area. The scale of requests for assistance – and the number of stakeholders involved – has augmented as a result. Against this backdrop, donors and affected States alike would benefit from a mechanism facilitating the provision of more effective and sustainable assistance.

In 2018, the GICHD and UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) jointly proposed the establishment of such a mechanism in the shape of a Geneva-based Ammunition Management Advisory Team (henceforth: AMAT). The AMAT mechanism assists States in managing ammunition safely and securely, grounded in the globally recognised International Ammunition Technical Guidelines (IATG). AMAT contributes directly to the GICHD 2019-2022 strategy’s outcome; “ammunition is managed by States according to good practice”, as well as being a concrete activity within UN Secretary-General’s Disarmament Agenda (2018; Action 22).