From Cambodia to Mozambique, Angola and Afghanistan, thousands of lives lost, or maimed, including several children, because of one unfortunate step… a consequence of millions of landmines buried in countries across the world, decades ago.
Years after the conflicts ended, mines, explosive remnants of war and improvised explosive devices still threaten some of the most vulnerable people in society: women travelling to markets, farmers herding cattle, humanitarian workers trying to reach those in need.
Mines continue to cause dreadful harm, instil fear and stop refugees and internally displaced people from returning to their homes… scars of previous conflicts that still open new wounds for civilians today.
Mines also continue to disrupt economic recovery and development, and survivors are often condemned to a life of poverty because of their injuries and the lack of rehabilitation services.
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In 2021, there is the added challenge of COVID-19 but demining work will continue by adapting itself.
Following the Mine Ban Convention(link is external) of 1997, many countries have declared themselves mine free – with others well on the way. This action emanated from the outcry by civil society in the early 1990s driving the multilateral system to take a stand against the use of anti-personnel mines. The European Union is strongly committed to supporting actions addressing the threats of anti-personnel mines and explosive remnants of war, including improvised explosive devices.
The EU is the world’s second biggest donor when it comes to mine action, after the United States, providing mine action assistance such as mine clearance, mine risk education, stockpile destruction, and assistance to victims in over 15 countries across the world, including: Afghanistan, Angola, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Chad, Colombia, Croatia, Guinea, Iraq, Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Myanmar, Nigeria, Philippines, Syria and Ukraine.
“The achievements of the mine action community show that, in working together, we can reach milestones once seen as impossible” – UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
European Union