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Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Through our fast-growing programmes and the Rays of Hope initiative, the IAEA is expanding access to nuclear medicine and cancer treatment in low- and middle-income countries, supporting care to patients around the world with little or no access to treatment. Learn more about the IAEA’s work to close the global cancer care gap: #CancerCare4All
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
World Wetlands Day highlights the importance of the conservation and sustainability of one of the world’s most threatened ecosystems for the health of people and the planet. The IAEA is helping to protect them with isotopic techniques.
This video was first published on 23 January 2024.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi will travel to Ukraine next week for high-level meetings in Kyiv, in which the ongoing efforts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to help prevent a nuclear accident during the military conflict will be discussed.
It will be the 11th mission to Ukraine led personally by the Director General since the conflict began almost three years ago, demonstrating the IAEA’s unwavering commitment to assist Ukraine in ensuring nuclear safety and security.
“As long as this horrific war continues, the IAEA will remain present and stay active, focused on doing everything we can to support nuclear safety and security in extremely challenging circumstances. As the overall situation is still precarious and fragile, our work there remains essential,” Director General Grossi said ahead of the visit to the Ukrainian capital on 4 February.
Over the past week, the IAEA teams present at Ukraine’s nuclear power plants (NPPs) have continued to report on the persistent risks the facilities are facing, with numerous indications of military activity near the sites.
At the Zaporizhzhya NPP (ZNPP), the IAEA team heard explosions daily coming from outside the plant, including multiple explosions at a near distance this morning. There was no damage reported to the plant itself.
Highlighting persistent challenges related to the availability of off-site power, the ZNPP’s sole remaining 750 kilovolt (kV) power line was disconnected on Wednesday due to the activation of a protection system, once again leaving the site dependent on its only remaining 330 kV back-up power line for the electricity it needs for reactor cooling and other essential nuclear safety functions.
The IAEA team has continued to conduct walkdowns across the ZNPP, including at the 750 kV open switchyard for the first time since late last year. The team members confirmed that maintenance on the voltage stabilizers had been completed and discussed future maintenance work with the ZNPP.
Last Friday, the team observed condensation – water drops on the floor and walls – within the containment building of reactor unit 5. The ZNPP confirmed it was aware of this issue, and the IAEA team will look further into this in the coming days. The team assessed that the safety system rooms were in good order.
The IAEA teams at the other NPPs in Ukraine and the Chornobyl site have continued to report air raid alarms every day. At Khmelnytskyy, South Ukraine and Chornobyl, the teams were informed that drones had been detected at various distances from the sites. At the Khmelnytskyy NPP, the team had to shelter at the site on Tuesday morning.
At the South Ukraine NPP, the team was informed that one of the plant’s two 750 kV lines was disconnected on Wednesday morning due to unspecified military activities. As a result, one of its three reactors temporarily decreased power output before later the same day returning to nominal power.
The IAEA teams at Khmelnytskyy, Rivne, South Ukraine and Chornobyl all rotated over the past week. The team at the ZNPP will rotate next week.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts said that the operator of the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in the Russian Federation has shown a commitment to enhancing operational safety.
Requested by the Government of the Russian Federation, the Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) mission ran from 13 to 30 January. The Team reviewed operational safety in Units 4 and 6 of the Novovoronezh NPP. An OSART mission was previously completed for Unit 5 in 2015.
OSART missions independently assess safety performance against the IAEA’s safety standards. The aim is to advance operational safety by proposing recommendations and, where appropriate, suggestions for improvement.
The Novovoronezh NPP is located in the Voronezh region, about 600 kilometres south of Moscow. The plant is owned by State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom (ROSATOM) and operated by Novovoronezh NPP, a subsidiary of the Rosenergoatom Joint Stock Company. The plant consists of seven units. Units 1, 2 and 3 are permanently shutdown and under decommissioning. Units 4, 5, 6 and 7 are operating. All units are pressurized water reactors (VVERs); Units 4 and 5 are VVER-V179 (417 MWe) and VVER-187 (1000 MWe), respectively. Units 6 and 7 are both VVER-392M (1180 MWe). Russia has 36 nuclear power reactors in operation, providing almost 20 per cent of the country’s total electricity production.
The team reviewed operating practices in Units 4 and 6 in the areas of leadership and management for safety, training and qualification, operations, maintenance, technical support, radiation protection, chemistry and accident management. The team was composed of seven experts from Belarus, Brazil, China, the Islamic Republic of Iran and South Africa, as well as four IAEA staff members and an observer from Russia.
To make its assessment, the team reviewed documents from the Novovoronezh plant on its main technical features, staff organization and responsibilities, and its operational programmes, procedures and performance prior to the mission. During the mission, the team observed the plant in operation, examined indicators of its performance and held in-depth discussions with plant personnel.
The OSART team observed that the staff at the plant are knowledgeable and professional and are committed to improving the operational safety and reliability of the plant.
The team identified one good practice to be shared with the nuclear industry globally:
The mission also provided some suggestions to further improve safety, including that the plant should consider enhancing:
“We are grateful to the international experts of the IAEA for conducting a comprehensive inspection at two power units of the Novovoronezh NPP – Unit 4 and Unit 6. This is a reputable team with over 282-years combined operational experience in the nuclear power industry. According to the mission results, the plant received suggestions to enhance further the operational safety performance of Units 4 and 6,” said Vladimir Povarov, Director of Novovoronezh NPP. “The mission confirmed that there was good alignment between the plant practices and the requirements in the IAEA standards.”
“Three of the four Novovoronezh NPP power units in operation have already successfully undertaken an IAEA international peer review. And we plan for power Unit 7 to be subjected to this procedure in the future,” Povarov added.
The team provided a draft report of the mission to the plant management. They will have the opportunity to make factual comments on the draft. These comments will be reviewed by the IAEA, and the final report will be submitted to the Government within three months.
Background
General information about OSART missions can be found on the IAEA website. An OSART mission is designed as a review of programmes and activities essential to operational safety. It is not a regulatory inspection, nor is it a design review or a substitute for an exhaustive assessment of the plant’s overall safety status.
Follow-up missions are standard components of the OSART programme and are typically conducted within two years of the initial mission.
The IAEA Safety Standards provide a robust framework of fundamental principles, requirements and guidance to ensure safety. They reflect an international consensus and serve as a global reference for protecting people and the environment from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Staff at Angau Memorial Hospital in Lae, Papua New Guinea, celebrate the installation of the new brachytherapy machine used to treat gynaecological and other cancers. (Photo: Angau Memorial Hospital)
After nearly a decade of inactivity, Papua New Guinea’s only radiotherapy machine re-started operations six months ago with support from the IAEA, giving renewed hope to thousands of cancer patients in the country.
This month, radiation medicine services at Angau Memorial Hospital received a boost with the start of brachytherapy, a critical procedure in the treatment of cervical cancer.
“This milestone represents a significant advancement in our cervical cancer treatment capabilities, offering more precise and localized therapy options to improve patient outcomes,” said Athula Kumara, medical physics expert at Angau Memorial Hospital, the facility that received the IAEA support.
Located in the city of Lae, Papua New Guinea’s shipping hub in the north, Angau is the country’s second largest hospital, catering for 675 000 people in the Morobe Province and serving as a regional referral hospital for 1.9 million residents.
The improved service is important as cancer remains a major public health issue in the country, with a burden of over 12 000 new cases and more than 7000 deaths every year, according to 2022 IARC figures. Breast, cervix uteri, as well as lip and oral cancers are the most frequent among women.
Brachytherapy is a form of internal radiotherapy in which sealed radioactive sources are placed inside or near a tumour, delivering high doses of radiation directly to the cancer while sparing surrounding healthy tissues. The procedure is a key component of radiation treatment for gynaecological cancers, but it can also be used to treat prostate, breast, soft tissue sarcomas, some head and neck tumours, and skin cancers.
The brachytherapy equipment was installed in late 2024 at Angau and started services this month. The first patient, a woman with cervical cancer, underwent external beam radiotherapy last year and is now receiving brachytherapy treatment as a boost.
The installation of the brachytherapy machine follows previous IAEA assistance in re-establishing radiotherapy at Angau. Services were discontinued in 2016, severely limiting options for cancer patients in the country. Many were referred abroad, but few could afford it. “Some travelled to Manila for treatment, but these cases were rare due to the high cost of travel and treatment,” Kumara said.
In 2023, an imPACT review carried out by the IAEA in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) recommended to urgently reestablish radiotherapy services in the country.
Through its technical cooperation and human health programmes, the IAEA supported the hospital in replacing the radiotherapy machine’s radioactive source and provided advice on the acquisition of the new brachytherapy unit. Radiotherapy started again in mid-August 2024, and Angau has since been treating around 50 patients per month on average, with hundreds more registered for treatment. “Treatment has been very successful, and we have seen many patients recover significantly after undergoing therapy,” Kumara added.
A key pre-requisite for the upgrade in radiation medicine has been training medical physicists. “These highly specialized health professionals ensure optimal equipment performance and maintain high-quality, safe treatment procedures,” said Daniel Berger, medical physicist in the IAEA’s Division of Human Health who led recent technical missions to build local capacity in the country. “Their expertise enables precise dosimetry, planning and dose delivery while ensuring equipment and clinical processes meet international standards for effective patient care,” he explained.
Medical physicists also provide technical guidance for infrastructure improvements, collaborating closely with regulatory authorities to licence and deploy nuclear and radiation medicine equipment. “Their work ensures that radiotherapy services can meet the growing demand for cancer care, ultimately helping to improve patient outcomes and advance healthcare standards,” Berger added.
Radiotherapy is one of the main pillars of cancer treatment, along with surgery and chemotherapy. In 2022, the IAEA launched the Rays of Hope initiative to support countries in increasing access to this life-saving treatment. Since becoming a Member State in 2012, Papua New Guinea has received IAEA support to strengthen radiation safety, including for the management of radiation sources for medical use, and to build the required capacity to expand cancer diagnosis and treatment.
While progress has been made in advancing cancer care, Kumara highlights that early diagnosis and treatment provision remain a challenge. “Patients arrive at very late stages of their cancer, often with extensive masses. By the time they seek treatment, the cancer has already spread, making it more difficult to achieve optimal outcomes,” he said. “One of our key goals moving forward is to increase awareness, particularly in remote areas where access to healthcare is limited.”
Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women globally, with around 660 000 new cases in 2022. About 94 per cent of the 350 000 deaths caused by cervical cancer in the same year occurred in low- and middle-income countries, driven by inequalities in access to vaccination against the human papillomavirus (HPV), responsible for 95 per cent of all cervical cancers, as well as screening and treatment services.
In many countries, January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, supporting efforts to promote HPV vaccination for prevention and early diagnosis and treatment of precancers, which greatly improve prospects for cure.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Ambassador Matilda Aku Alomatu Osei-Agyeman. (Photo: D. Calma/IAEA)
In a special meeting today the IAEA Board of Governors elected Ambassador Matilda Aku Alomatu Osei-Agyeman of Ghana as its Chairperson for 2025. She will complete the remainder of the term of office of her predecessor, Ambassador Philbert Abaka Johnson of Ghana, who was elected in September 2024. Ambassador Osei-Agyeman’s term commences today and will end in September 2025.
Ambassador Osei-Agyeman is the Permanent Representative of Ghana to the IAEA, the United Nations Offices and other international organizations in Vienna. A career diplomat with over 25 years of experience, she has held various positions in Ghana and abroad covering both bilateral and multilateral issues.
Prior to her appointment in Vienna, Ambassador Osei-Agyeman served as Minister Plenipotentiary and Deputy Ambassador in the Embassy of the Republic of Ghana to Italy from 2023 to 2024. She has also served in diplomatic postings in the United Kingdom, Malta, the United States of America and at Ghana’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland.
Ambassador Osei-Agyeman has also held numerous posts in Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, including, most recently, serving as Director of the Europe Bureau from 2021 to 2023 and as the first Director of the Candidatures Portfolio in 2021, where she ensured effective advocacy resulting in Ghana’s election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for 2022 and 2023.
Ambassador Osei-Agyeman holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Ghana and a Master of Arts in international affairs from the Legon Centre for International Affairs & Diplomacy in Ghana. She has also participated in various courses on leadership and diplomacy.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
Unlike wind and solar, nuclear power plants and hydropower offer dispatchable energy, meaning they are able to adjust their output to meet electricity demand. Additionally, the expanded use of nuclear power for non-electric applications, including district heating, hydrogen production, desalination and heat for industrial processes, offers further options to reduce emissions.
To support this increasing nuclear energy demand, the IAEA is actively assisting countries by providing technical expertise and capacity building to help them establish or expand nuclear power plants.
Integrated Nuclear Infrastructure Reviews (INIR) are an example where the IAEA assists countries to assess the status of their national infrastructure as they embark on establishing nuclear power plants. INIR missions enable countries to engage in discussions and receive guidance from experts about recommendations and best practices in nuclear power infrastructure development.
These missions ensure that the infrastructure necessary for the safe, secure and sustainable use of nuclear power is developed and implemented in a responsible and orderly manner.
In 2009, the IAEA conducted the first INIR Mission to a country initiating the use of nuclear power. Since then, INIR missions have been hosted by various states including the United Arab Emirates, that has successfully established the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. This year, it is expected to supply around 25 per cent of the UAE’s electricity, up from its current contribution of 20 per cent, reducing the country’s carbon emissions by 22 million tonnes annually.
Similarly, countries like Sweden, France and Finland have utilized nuclear energy combined with hydro and renewables to largely decarbonize their electricity production. France has an extremely low level of CO2 emissions from electricity generation, since over 90 per cent of its electricity is from low-carbon sources, 70 per cent of that from nuclear power. And 94 percent of Sweden’s electricity comes from low carbon sources in Sweden with more than a third coming from nuclear, according to the IEA.
The IAEA is also supporting newcomer countries and developing countries in their transition to nuclear energy, with trainings, technical assistance, and technology transfer of tools and methodologies to help them evaluate the role of different technologies in meeting their future energy needs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
“A few years ago, discussions might have been about phasing out nuclear energy. Today, at the World Economic Forum, we’re on the road to tripling nuclear capacity. This shows a shift in how nuclear energy is increasingly seen as essential for net-zero and energy transition,” said Mr Grossi this week at the first ever public session on nuclear energy at the World Economic forum Annual Meeting in Davos.
The IAEA’s latest projections indicate that world nuclear capacity will increase 2.5 times the current capacity by 2050. At present, 31 countries operate power plants, with 419 reactors in operation, a combined electrical capacity of 378.1 gigawatt GW, producing about 10 per cent of the world’s electricity. Additionally, over 62 reactors are currently under construction, highlighting the growing adoption of nuclear energy worldwide.
“I am confident 2025 will see commitments translated into concrete projects. Nuclear energy is still providing the world with a quarter of its low-carbon power and supporting the roll out of intermittent renewables like solar and wind. In future we will see even more nuclear deliver the clean, reliable, and secure power the world needs. As always, IAEA will be there to assist countries in making it happen,” said Mr Grossi.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
“The work of the IAEA is at the centre of the debates. In particular, the nexus between nuclear energy and artificial intelligence has attracted a lot of attention,” the Director General said in Davos.
The IAEA held a session on nuclear’s role in meeting energy demands for artificial intelligence (AI), with experts from Bloomberg and technology venture capitalists DCVC. “Big tech needs nuclear to power energy-intensive AI data centres,” explained Mr Grossi.
A major event was also held on tripling nuclear energy, and the need for standardization, regulation, financing and collaboration in scaling up nuclear.
A few years ago, discussions might have been about phasing out nuclear energy.
Today, at @wef #WEF25, we’re on “the road to tripling nuclear capacity”. This shows how nuclear is increasingly seen as essential for net-zero and energy transition.
Watch ↓ https://t.co/P9oRXGX2Dg
— Rafael MarianoGrossi (@rafaelmgrossi) January 21, 2025
The Director General met with multiple world leaders to discuss development, energy and world peace, including Panama’s President Jose Raul Mulino, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog, Austria’s Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg and Flanders’ Minister-President Matthias Diependaele.
Mr Grossi and Mr Mulino engaged on the IAEA’s Atoms4Food programme, as well as improving cancer care with the IAEA’s Rays Of Hope programme. “The IAEA is proud to stand with Panama in building a healthier, more resilient future for its people,” the Director General said.
The IAEA’s work on health, food and nutrition was a focus of multiple high-level dialogues. For example, Mr Grossi met with Viet Nam’s Minister of Science and Technology Huynh Thanh Dat to discuss the drought-tolerant, high-yield rice varieties that were developed with IAEA support, and with the CEO of Anglo American, Duncan Wanblad, on progress on a joint research project to fight soil salinity and advance sustainable farming practices.
Another key topic for the week was international security, particularly the IAEA’s role in ensuring nonproliferation worldwide.
The Director General was a speaker at the World Economic Forum’s Rubik’s Cube of Global Security, where he addressed pressures on nonproliferation amid rising geostrategic tensions, alongside Finland’s President Alexander Stubb, Libya’s Prime Minister Abdulhamid AlDabaiba, the International Crisis Group, Comfort Ero, Harvard Kennedy School’s Meghan O’Sullivan, and Foreign Affairs Magazine’s Dan Kurtz-Phelan.
Addressed pressures on nonproliferation amid rising geostrategic tensions at @wef #WEF25 Rubik’s Cube of Global Security. In today’s complex geopolitical landscape, the nonproliferation regime remains indispensable and, despite challenges, it has served the global community well. pic.twitter.com/58oDiyHuTv
— Rafael MarianoGrossi (@rafaelmgrossi) January 22, 2025
Watch the recording of the session here.
The Director General was also active in closed sessions on artificial intelligence and sustainable energy in Latin America with leaders of the region, as well as an event on growing the African economy with leaders from the continent.
“The mission and the importance of the IAEA continue to grow. This is why we are here in Davos,” concluded the Director General.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team based at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has heard frequent explosions from outside the site over the past week, further underlining persistent dangers to nuclear safety and security during the military conflict, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said today.
The team reported hearing multiple instances of such military activity in recent days, at varying distances from the ZNPP. There was no damage reported to the plant itself. Although the sound of nearby military action has been a common occurrence ever since the IAEA established a continued presence at the ZNPP in September 2022, it has happened virtually daily in recent weeks.
“For almost three years now, we have been doing everything we can to help prevent a nuclear accident at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant and elsewhere in Ukraine. An accident has not occurred, but the situation is not improving. It is still precarious. I remain seriously concerned about nuclear safety and security in Ukraine, including at the Zaporizhzhya site. Our work is far from over,” Director General Grossi said.
As part of the ongoing work to monitor developments relevant for nuclear safety and security, the IAEA team has continued to conduct walkdowns across the site – including but not limited to the main and emergency control rooms of four reactor units and one turbine hall – and observed and discussed various safety-related maintenance activities with the plant.
The IAEA team was also informed that the ZNPP is procuring three new mobile diesel generators, similar to those received late last year. They are in addition to the site’s 20 fixed emergency diesel generators that are designed to provide on-site power if there is a total loss of off-site power.
Separately, the ZNPP said that four diesel steam generators were put into operation for ten days to provide the steam needed to process liquid radioactive waste. These generators were commissioned a year ago.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, air raid alarms were heard on several occasions at Ukraine’s three operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – as well as at the Chornobyl site. At the Khmelnytskyy NPP, the IAEA team members have taken shelter at their residence three times in recent days due to such alerts.
At the Khmelnytskyy and South Ukraine NPPs and the Chornobyl site, the IAEA teams were informed of instances of drones being detected at distances ranging from 2 to 30 km from the sites.
Despite such military activities, Ukraine’s nine operating nuclear power reactors have been operating at full capacity this week, safely generating much-needed electricity during the cold winter months.
Separately, the Agency continued with deliveries under its comprehensive programme of nuclear safety and security assistance to Ukraine. Last week, the Chornobyl site received equipment to enhance its nuclear security system. The delivery, the 104th organised by the IAEA since the start of the armed conflict, was supported with funds from the United Kingdom.
Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA
(Graphic: A. Vargas/IAEA)
The latest application of the IAEA’s Lise Meitner Programme is now officially open, offering career development and networking opportunities for women professionals in the nuclear field.
The IAEA Lise Meitner Programme (LMP), named after the Austrian-Swedish physicist instrumental in the discovery of nuclear fission, aims to boost technical skills of early and midcareer women professionals in the nuclear sector through visiting programmes hosted by IAEA member countries. The programme is additionally tailored to strengthen participants’ soft skills, particularly in leadership and managerial abilities.
Interested early and mid-career women professionals from IAEA member countries with a nuclear-related background relevant to the three focus areas of the current LMP editions are encouraged to apply by 7 February 2025.
To be eligible for the LMP, applicants from an IAEA member country must either be currently employed with 3-10 years of relevant work experience in the nuclear field or in the final year of their PhD studies in the nuclear field with relevant prior working experience.
The first LMP professional visit in 2025 will be hosted by the Argentinian National Atomic Energy Commission from 4 to 17 May, 2025 and will focus on nuclear power programme development, while the second LMP visit will be hosted by the University of Tokyo and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, under the coordination of the Cabinet Office of Japan, from 8 to 21 June 2025, and will focus on advanced nuclear technology development and Fukushima recovery efforts.
The third LMP visit will focus on research reactors and will take place from 13 to 25 July 2025, hosted by the McMaster University and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories.
The last LMP visit took place from 25 March to 5 April 2024 in the Republic of Korea and was focused on nuclear power.
”The Lise Meitner Programme provided me with a unique and invaluable opportunity to connect with women nuclear professionals from across the globe. Through engaging in technical workshops, presentations, professional development activities, and facility tours, I was able to build meaningful bonds and exchange knowledge and experiences with fellow professionals in the field,” said Yasmine Balci, a 2024 LMP Visiting Professional from Türkiye.
“A nuclear odyssey! That’s how I would describe the 2024 Lise Meitner Programme visit to the Republic of Korea. It was an insightful, rewarding, and holistic programme that has added immense value to my current and future endeavours in the nuclear field,” said Farisha Panday, an LMP visiting professional from South Africa.
The IAEA works to address the underrepresentation of women in the nuclear field through the LMP and the IAEA Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme (MSCFP). The IAEA welcomes partnering opportunities with public and private sectors, academia and civil society to work together for more women in nuclear.
More information on the programme, including facts and figures, testimonials, donors and programme components can be found here.