The exercise is jointly sponsored and co-ordinated by five international organizations, European Commission (EC), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), World Health Organization (WHO) and World Meteorological Organization (WMO). The 54 countries participating worldwide will follow their own actual national emergency response plans and procedures, using their own emergency response centres, and will share information and co-ordinate response activities.
The main objectives of the exercise are to test existing national and international procedures and arrangements for responding to a nuclear emergency, co-ordinate the release of information, and assess the effectiveness of advisory and decision making mechanisms.
The IAEA has specific responsibilities under two international conventions related to emergencies involving ionizing radiation -- the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident and the Convention on Assistance in the Case of a Nuclear Accident or Radiological Emergency. These two conventions are the prime legal instruments that establish an international framework to facilitate the exchange of information and the prompt provision of assistance in the event of an emergency. During the JINEX 1 exercise, the IAEA, 54 participating Member States and the participating International Organizations with response functions will test the procedures and plans in place to facilitate and co-ordinate information exchange, as well as the use of new technology that allows more rapid communication between parties.
Following the exercise, each participating organization will undertake an evaluation in order to further improve emergency preparedness.