31 C. General Conference 31st session, Paris C/57 19 October 2001 Original: English. Item 5.13 of the agenda

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1 General Conference 31st session, Paris C 31 C/57 19 October 2001 Original: English Item 5.13 of the agenda PROPOSAL FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR SYNCHROTRON-LIGHT FOR EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE AND APPLICATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST (SESAME) UNDER THE AUSPICES OF UNESCO Source: 162 EX/Decision OUTLINE Background: Since 1998, UNESCO has organized and hosted a series of consultations with interested governments and scientists from the Middle East and the Mediterranean region on the feasibility of establishing an international centre of excellence in the Middle East for scientific research, applications and advanced training using synchrotron light. Preparations have advanced to a point where governments involved wish to establish the centre under UNESCO s auspices. At its 162nd session the Executive Board examined documents 162 EX/49 and 162 EX/49 Add. which described the SESAME project. It welcomed the initiative of creating the international centre, and adopted a decision through which it transmits the matter to the General Conference at its 31st session. Purpose: The present document consists of a short report by the Director-General supplemented by two appendices consisting of an explanatory note by Jordan, the proposed host state of SESAME, and a second report by the Director-General describing UNESCO s involvement in the project and results obtained so far. Decision required: paragraph 3.

2 31 C/57 1. At its 162nd session the Executive Board examined document 162 EX/49 which contained an explanatory note submitted by Jordan describing the preparations for the establishment of a major international centre for research using synchrotron light in the Middle East (SESAME). Document 162 EX/49 Add. contained a report by the Director- General recounting UNESCO s involvement in the project to date, and the major results thus far achieved. Documents 162 EX/49 and Add. are both to be found as appendices to the present document. 2. The Executive Board welcomed the initiative of creating the SESAME Centre, and recognized the great potential benefit offered by the project in terms of capacity-raising and peace-building in the Middle East. It emphasized the need to maintain momentum as the project moves from the planning to the operational phase. Considering that a two-year delay in approving the establishment of the Centre under UNESCO s auspices would be likely to put the project in jeopardy, it decided to propose to the General Conference at this, its 31st session, that it delegate to the Board the authority for examining and approving the creation of the SESAME Centre under the auspices of UNESCO, it being understood that the Board would therefore examine the feasibility study and necessary agreements at a forthcoming session in It accordingly adopted the following decision (162 EX/Decision 3.3.5): TheExecutiveBoard, 1. Having examined documents 162 EX/49 and Add., 2. Recommends that the General Conference at its 31st session adopt the following resolution: The General Conference, 1. Aware of the importance of international and regional cooperation for the development of science and technology in the Middle East and elsewhere, 2. Appreciating the efforts of the Interim Council of the SESAME project to establish in the Middle East an international centre of excellence for scientific research, technological development and training using synchrotron light, 3. Supports the establishment of the International Centre for Synchrotron Light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East (SESAME) under the auspices of UNESCO; 4. Delegates to the Executive Board the authority for further examining and approving the creation of such a centre in Jordan, including approval of any necessary agreements, in the light of the full feasibility study to be submitted to it by the Director-General; 5. Invites all interested Member States, especially those from the Middle East, to support the project.

3 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board ex Hundred and sixty-second Session 162 EX/49 PARIS, 6 September 2001 Original: English Item of the provisional agenda PROPOSAL FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR SYNCHROTRON-LIGHT FOR EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE AND APPLICATIONS IN THE MIDDLE EAST (SESAME) UNDER THE AUSPICES OF UNESCO SUMMARY This item has been included in the provisional agenda of the 162nd session at the request of Jordan. An explanatory note is reproduced below. EXPLANATORY NOTE Synchrotron-light for experimental science and applications in the Middle East The SESAME Project aims to establish a major international centre of excellence as a cooperative venture by the scientists of the Middle East region. It is being developed under the umbrella of UNESCO and will be located in Allan Jordan (30 km from Amman and 30 km from the King Hussein Bridge of the Jordan River). Eleven countries have so far jointed the project. These are Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, the Palestinian Authority and Turkey. Observer countries include Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States. Several other countries have expressed interest in joining. SESAME will provide excellent performance for most applications, including those now done at multi-gev rings. Specific programmes planned for SESAME include structural molecular biology, molecular environmental science, surface and interface science, microelectromechanical devices, x-ray imaging, archaeological microanalysis, materials characterization, and medical applications. As an international scientific and technological

4 162 EX/49 page 2 centre of excellence open to all qualified scientists from the Middle East and elsewhere, SESAME will serve as a propeller for the scientific, technical, and economic development of the region and strengthen collaboration in science. The centre will be jointly operated and supported by all member countries, with additional support from other countries interested. SESAME will have as its centrepiece a synchrotron radiation source based on a gift from Germany of the 0.8 GeV BESSY 1 1 storage ring and injector system which stopped operation at the end of November With the technical support of teams from Armenia and Russia, and with funds provided by SESAME members and UNESCO, the components of these machines have been dismantled and documented in a controlled way and are now stored in Berlin ready for shipment to Jordan, where they will be reassembled and upgraded. Major benefits of the project have already been realized at workshops and schools on Accelerator Science and Technology, Materials Research and Structural Molecular Biology. These, and other SESAME meetings, have brought scientists and engineers from SESAME member countries together with experts in synchrotron radiation sources and applications. The outcome of these workshops shows that for scientific research in the Middle East region a Synchrotron-light is strongly needed. Twenty scientists and engineers are currently spending six to 12 months each, working on accelerator projects at European laboratories and eight scientists have completed or are now completing long-term visits to United States synchrotron radiation laboratories working on applications of synchrotron radiation. Support for these activities has been provided by UNESCO, SESAME member countries, the United States Department of Energy, ICTP (Trieste) and the International Atomic Energy Agency, as well as by many synchrotron radiation laboratories in Europe and the United States. As a result of the training programmes the staff for building up the project has already been established. The next major step for the project will take place at the seventh meeting of the SESAME Interim Council in Amman, Jordan from 17 to 19 December The meeting will be presided over by Herwig Schopper, Chairperson of the SESAME Interim Council, under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II. A ground-breaking ceremony is planned at this time to mark the beginning of construction of the building financed by the Government of Jordan with a total area of 6,200m 2 to host the facility. With this commitment by Jordan, the German Government has agreed to formally turn over the BESSY 1 equipment. Also, a Technical Director has been recently appointed to lead the efforts to upgrade the BESSY 1 components and to install and commission the new machine. With continued progress in these developments it is expected that the research programme can start in The BESSY 1 ring will be significantly upgraded in size and energy. It will accommodate six insertion devices, rather than only two that BESSY 1 could accommodate. Superconducting multipole wigglers will extend the spectral range to kev. With these upgrades the facility would be a very capable, broad spectral range source it s been called a super second generation source. Due to its low emittance (15 mm-rad), (high stored current up to 700 ma), and small source size at the wiggler source points (0.1 mm x 0.02 mm sigmas), very high flux and flux density would be available from IR to hard x-rays. Undulators would provide relatively high brightness at photon energies up to about 4 kev.

5 162 EX/49 page 3 EAST ELEVATION NORTH ELEVATION In the sixth meeting of the SESAME Interim Council held in Amman in the period of 27 and 28 August 2001, the following important resolution was adopted by SESAME member states expressing their commitment to the project: Resolution: At the fifth Interim Council meeting held in Cairo on 12 and 13 March 2001, delegates reaffirmed their commitment to expedite the realization of the SESAME facility in Jordan as a prerequisite step in the ratification of an agreed legal status for SESAME under the auspices of UNESCO. This will permit: 1. the speedy transfer of BESSY 1 components (already dismantled at the expense of SESAME and UNESCO) from Germany to Jordan; 2. the recruitment of international staff; 3. attracting and accepting the necessary funding. Towards this end, after discussions, the optimal route consisted of the following number of options: 1. submission of a draft agreement to UNESCO (proposed as an agenda item for the meeting in autumn 2001); 2. ensure submission of the Board s recommendation to the UNESCO General Conference at its next meeting for its final approval; 3. the Director-General of UNESCO is being entrusted to evaluate the details of the feasibility of proposals and to clarify any remaining legal aspects. The Interim Council at its sixth meeting in Amman has approved this approach and authorized the Chairperson of the IC to submit it to UNESCO authorities.

6 162 EX/49 page 4 The procedure mentioned in the resolution is indispensable in order to advance the project. by having the ground-breaking ceremony in December 2001; followed by the shipment of the BESSY 1 components to Jordan; thus, ending in accordance with the German Government s position several years of joint preparatory work and definitely initiating the implementation phase of SESAME. For its implementation, SESAME now urgently needs a legal basis for the following reasons: to receive and accept donation funds; to employ international staff; to transfer the BESSY 1 components to SESAME; to sign a site agreement with Jordan; to consolidate the legal commitment of the SESAME Member States. If the formal establishment of SESAME is delayed the project would be in jeopardy. Hence the Executive Board is kindly requested to take a decision to establish SESAME under the auspices of UNESCO, as an operationally autonomous centre taking into consideration the Draft Agreement. Further information can be found on the website:

7 ex United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Executive Board Hundred and sixty-second Session 162 EX/49 Add. PARIS, 25 September 2001 Original: English Item of the provisional agenda PROPOSAL FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR SYNCHROTRON-LIGHT FOR EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE AND APPLICATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST (SESAME) UNDER THE AUSPICES OF UNESCO SUMMARY By letter of 24 July 2001 to the Chairperson of the Executive Board, the Permanent Delegation of Jordan to UNESCO requested the inclusion of this item on the provisional agenda of the 162nd session of the Executive Board (Item 3.3.5). Since 1998, UNESCO has organized and hosted a series of consultations with interested governments and scientists from the Middle East and the Mediterranean region on the feasibility of establishing an international centre of excellence in the Middle East for scientific research, applications and advanced training using synchrotron light. Preparations for this major project of regional and international cooperation have since advanced to a point where the governments involved wish to establish the centre under UNESCO s auspices. The present document contains a report of the Director- General complementing the explanatory note submitted by Jordan, in Document 162 EX/49, and describing UNESCO s involvement in the project and the major results thus far achieved. Decision required: paragraph 25

8 162 EX/49 Add. INTRODUCTION 1. A synchrotron source is an exceedingly powerful source of light based on advanced technology of particle accelerators. Bunches of charged particles electrons circulate inside a large ring-shaped tube under vacuum. In the case of SESAME, the ring has a circumference of about 100 metres. Under the action of special magnet systems, the electrons emit synchrotron light in a spectrum ranging from infrared radiation to X-rays. The emitted light is collected by many different beamlines connected to the ring, and conveyed to experimental chambers. The light is thus simultaneously exploited by tens of scientific user groups. 2. Use of synchrotron light for fundamental and applied science and technology has experienced an explosive growth over the last decades. Synchrotron light is used by tens of thousands of scientists and technologists. Applications range from pharmaceutical R&D to micro-chemical analysis for medical, environmental, biological and archaeological research, and from the industrial production of micro-mechanical components to novel and very powerful radiological techniques. About 45 synchrotron light sources are in operation worldwide and more are under construction. Only a few of these synchrotron light sources are located in developing countries, notably in Brazil, China, India, Republic of Korea and Thailand. No such facility exists currently in the Middle East and the Mediterranean region and scientists interested in research based on synchrotron light must travel long distances to use facilities elsewhere. BACKGROUND 3. The proposal to establish an international centre for research using synchrotron light in the Middle East was first brought to the attention of the Director-General of UNESCO in early 1998 by the Middle East Scientific Cooperation (MESC), a group of scientists active in promoting international scientific collaboration with and within the Middle East. The scientists argued that an existing synchrotron light source operating in Berlin (Germany) that was about to be shut down, would when upgraded and modernized form an excellent base for such a research centre. Contacted by the scientists, the German Government had declared its readiness in principle to donate the BESSY 1 synchrotron light source for this purpose. At its construction, BESSY 1 represented a value of US $60 million. 4. The Director-General agreed to organize in collaboration with MESC a consultative meeting of representatives of interested governments and scientists from the Middle East, Europe, United States and Japan to explore the feasibility of the proposal. The meeting was held in June 1999 at UNESCO Headquarters. It was attended by delegations representing the Governments of Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Authority and Turkey. Representatives from Germany, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States participated as observers. Other participants included scientists from the MESC collaboration and other scientists interested in the project. 5. The participants unanimously adopted the resolution as follows: (a) (b) supporting the creation of an international centre of excellence in the Middle East, with a synchrotron source as its main facility, for basic and applied research and education ; declaring this centre open to all scientists, engineers and technicians from the region and from other parts of the world ;

9 162 EX/49 Add. page 2 (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) expressing appreciation to the German Government for its positive position to make available the BESSY 1 facility in Berlin free of charge and requesting the Director-General to make the necessary arrangements for the transfer of BESSY 1 to the Middle East ; setting up under the auspices of UNESCO an Interim Council with up to two representatives of interested governments to investigate the policy, organizational, scientific, technical and financial aspects and agreeing that the official delegates of the present meeting will act as members of the Interim Council ; setting up in addition Technical, Scientific, Financial and Training Committees reporting to the Interim Council; inviting countries in the wider Middle East region to join the project and to make proposals for hosting the facility; requesting the Director-General to bring the project to the attention of the World Conference on Science in Budapest in June/July At the close of the consultative meeting therefore, the Members of the Interim Council were Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Authority and Turkey. The representatives of the following countries agreed to serve as Observers of the Interim Council: Germany, Italy, Japan, Sweden and the United States. Professor Herwig Schopper, former Director-General of CERN, was elected President of the Interim Council and the Director-General agreed to assure provisionally its Secretariat. 7. UNESCO subsequently organized and hosted five meetings of the Interim Council at UNESCO Headquarters (December 1999), in Amman, Jordan (June 2000), in Yerevan, Armenia (November 2000), Cairo, Egypt (March 2001) and Amman, Jordan (27-28 August 2001). A special meeting of the Interim Council to prepare the selection of the SESAME site was held at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva (Switzerland) in April The Interim Council decided to name the proposed centre SESAME, an acronym standing for Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East. 9. The Technical Committee developed and published a detailed technical study and proposal for the SESAME synchrotron light source ( Green Book ). By making use of essential components of the BESSY 1 machine, the cost of the project would be substantially lower than building a new machine from scratch. The total cost of the SESAME Centre was estimated at US $20 million, with additional funds needed for the construction of beamlines and user laboratories. Annual operating costs were projected to be about US $3 million plus the cost of staff. 10. The proposal to establish the SESAME Centre was well received by the delegates to the World Conference on Science in Budapest in June/July The website of the Conference published a number of very favourable articles on the project and the scientific and general press reported on the project as well. These articles and other information in English, and partly in Arabic as well, are available on the SESAME website that is being maintained by Al Balqa Applied University in Jordan.

10 162 EX/49 Add. page In January 2000, the Director-General informed the German Federal Minister for Education and Research that he was prepared to initiate the necessary steps towards the setting up of SESAME as a Centre under the auspices of UNESCO. In cooperation with the Ministry, UNESCO subsequently made arrangements for the dismantling, packing and temporary storage of BESSY 1 in Berlin, where it is awaiting shipment to the Middle East. The necessary funds of US $600,000 were provided by Members and some Observers of the Interim Council ($200,000) and by UNESCO ($400,000). 12. Seven Members of the SESAME Interim Council submitted proposals for hosting the SESAME facility: Armenia, Egypt, Islamic Republic of Iran, Jordan, Oman, Palestinian Authority and Turkey. After extensive discussions on the technical, political and financial aspects, the Interim Council decided to select the offer of Jordan to locate SESAME in Allaan, a village midway between Amman and the Jordan River. The Jordanian Government is committed to provide the land, the buildings existing on that land and to construct the accelerator hall at a cost of up to US $6 million. 13. During the start-up phase, Members pledged to contribute an annual amount of $50,000 each into an account set up and managed by UNESCO. A total amount of $250,000 has been transferred into this account thus far during In addition, Members agreed to make contributions in kind in the form of locally constructed equipment, technical and scientific manpower, training and special financial contributions. Joint efforts are being made by SESAME Members and Observers as well as UNESCO to obtain funds from the European Commission and other external sources for the upgrading of the BESSY 1 machine and its subsequent re-installation as the SESAME facility. 14. Significant progress has been made in training accelerator specialists from the region and in developing the scientific community and scientific programme for SESAME. Eight synchrotron radiation laboratories in Europe, namely CLRC (Daresbury), LURE (Paris), ESRF (Grenoble), ANKA (Karlsruhe), Swiss Light Source (Zurich), ELETTRA (Trieste), DESY (Hamburg) and Max-Lab (Lund) are providing training for periods of about one year to more than 30 scientists and engineers from the Middle East so that they can subsequently participate in the construction and operation of the SESAME machine. Support is being provided by the host laboratories and ICTP, IAEA, the Swedish Science Council and French Government Agencies. Under a United States Cooperative Research Program, funded largely by the Department of Energy, eight scientists from Middle East countries are receiving training at US synchrotron radiation laboratories (ALS, APS, CAMD, NSLS, SSRL, SURF) for periods of up to one year. 15. The Scientific Committee organized four workshops: on Structural Molecular Biology in April 2000 in Athens (Greece) and in December 2000 in Cyprus, on Materials Research in September 2001 in Ankara (Turkey) and on Bio-informatics and Structural Modelling in September 2001 in Istanbul (Turkey). The workshops focused on research that would use the SESAME facility and defined the beam lines and user-support facilities and staff required for such research. The Scientific Committee is in touch with a large community of scientists from the Middle East and other regions who are actively interested in using the SESAME facility. 16. The Interim Council selected Professor Dieter Einfeld (Germany) as the first Technical Director of the SESAME facility in Allaan, Jordan. Professor Einfeld has wide-ranging experience in building and operating synchrotron light facilities, among them BESSY 1 and the third-generation ANKA facility in Karlsruhe (Germany). He will be responsible for the development of the technical facilities and the general infrastructure of SESAME. UNESCO has issued Professor Einfeld with a Consultant Contract, using funds provided by SESAME Members.

11 162 EX/49 Add. page Finally, the Interim Council proposed a draft of an agreement between SESAME Members and UNESCO that would enable the parties to establish the SESAME Centre. CONCLUSIONS 18. The SESAME project aims to establish the Middle East s first major international research centre as a cooperative venture of governments and scientists of the region. It is being developed under the umbrella of UNESCO and will be located in Allaan, Jordan. Eleven governments have so far joined the project: Armenia, Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Palestinian Authority and Turkey. Observer countries include France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Pakistan, Russian Federation, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States. Several other countries have expressed interest in joining. 19. As a world-class international centre of science and technology, SESAME will have major practical benefits for the region. It will promote scientific collaboration between participating countries and serve as a major channel of international scientific cooperation with the region. Its use by a broad range of scientists from different disciplines, as well as engineers and technical experts interested in working with synchrotron light, will promote interdisciplinary collaboration. Participating countries will benefit from advanced training of engineers and technicians in state-of-the-art fields and techniques. Last but not least, SESAME will make a major contribution to peaceful cooperation in the Middle East through scientific collaboration. 20. As such, the SESAME project is in full harmony with UNESCO s Constitution, which states that The purpose of the Organization is to contribute to peace and security by promoting collaboration among the nations through education, science and culture The financial implications for UNESCO for are estimated at $180,000 in support of travel grants to scientists to enable them to attend the four sessions of the Council sessions and six working group meetings on scientific, technical and training aspects. These funds can be met from resources foreseen in draft document 31 C/ The Director-General is of the opinion that UNESCO has a unique and vital role to play in the creation of SESAME until its establishment as an independent entity. 23. It should be recalled that underlying the Directives of the General Conference concerning the establishment of institutes and centres under the auspices of UNESCO is the premise that UNESCO s role is one of start-up assistance, to enable such entities to become operational and eventually attain full autonomy. Thus, at its present stage of development, the Director-General believes that the SESAME project can best be carried forward under the auspices of UNESCO. This would be comparable to the process that led to the creation and development of CERN. 24. Therefore, given that the General Conference requires a feasibility study, the Director- General proposes that the Secretariat carry out and submit such a study to the Executive Board at its 164th session. In order to ensure optimal progress he recommends that the General Conference delegates to the Executive Board the authority to finalize and approve all details, including any necessary agreements.

12 162 EX/49 Add. page 5 PROPOSED DECISION 25. In the light of the above, the Executive Board may wish to consider the following decision: TheExecutiveBoard, 1. Having examined documents 162 EX/49 and 162 EX/49 Add., which contains the explanatory note submitted by Jordan together with the report of the Director- General, 2. Aware of the importance of international and regional cooperation for the development of science and technology in the Middle East and elsewhere, 3. Appreciating the efforts of the Interim Council of the SESAME project to establish in the Middle East an international centre of excellence for scientific research, technological development and training using synchrotron light, 4. Recommends to the General Conference to approve the initiative of establishing the International Centre for Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East (SESAME) under the auspices of UNESCO and to delegate to the Executive Board the authority for further examining and approving the creation of such a centre in Jordan including approval of any necessary agreements, in the light of the full feasibility study to be submitted to it by the Director-General; 5. Invites all Member States from the Middle East to join the project.