The Chemical Weapons Convention (the ‘Convention’ or ‘CWC’) is an international non-proliferation treaty that bans the development, production, possession or use of chemical weapons, and requires the destruction of an existing weapons. The CWC is the first multilateral arms control and non-proliferation treaty that directly affect the private sector. The CWC entered into force on 29 April 1997 and aims to eliminate an entire category of weapons of mass destruction by prohibiting the development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention, transfer or use of chemical weapons by States Parties.

Malaysia signed the CWC on 13 january 1993 and ratified the Convention on 20 April 2000. The Convention entered into force in Malaysia on 20 May 2000.

Most countries including Malaysia does not own or possess chemical weapons, old chemical weapons, abandoned chemical weapons and chemical weapons production facilities. However, the CWC requests each State Parties to monitor and verify their chemical industries and other relating industries which manage or possess certain toxic chemicals, referred to as Scheduled Chemicals. In other words, the Convention regulates the usage of industrial chemicals listed as Scheduled Chemicals and also the Unscheduled Discrete Organic Chemicals (DOC). Currently there are 188 States Parties to the CWC.