9 t h E d i t i o n J u l y 2 0 1 0 U n i t e d S t a t es De p a r t m e n t o f S t a t e B u r e a u o f P o l i t i c a l - M i l i t a r y A f f a i r s

To Walk The

Earth in Safety

The United States’ Commitment to Conventional Weapons Destruction
T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s

A Message from Assistant Secretary Andrew J. Shapiro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

SPECIAL REPORT

The United States’ Conventional Weapons Destruction Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Africa 8

Angola. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Burundi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Democratic Republic of the Congo. . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Ethiopia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Gambia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Guinea-Bissau. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Kenya. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Mozambique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Republic of the Congo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Somalia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Sudan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Asia 16

Afghanistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Cambodia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Laos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Philippines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Sri Lanka. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Tajikistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Thailand. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Vietnam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Europe 26

Albania. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Azerbaijan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Bosnia and Herzegovina. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Bulgaria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Croatia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Estonia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Georgia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Kosovo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Macedonia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Montenegro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Serbia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Ukraine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Latin America 36

Chile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Colombia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Ecuador. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Peru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

The Middle East 40

Iraq. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Jordan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Lebanon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Yemen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

On the cover

Afghanistan: As a result of a mine-risk education 

class, these girls from Samangan province now 

know to avoid explosive remnants of war and to 

report them to the proper authorities to prevent 

injuries. October 2008. ©Heather Fassio

To help save natural resources and protect our environment, this 

edition of To Walk The Earth In Safety was printed on 10 percent postconsumer-waste recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks.

Edited and Produced by the Center for International 

Stabilization and Recovery (http://cisr.jmu.edu). 

Graphic Design by The Hatchery Design Company (www.thehatchery.cc). 

Printed by Branner Printing, Timberville, Va., USA.

Reaching End states in the U.S. Humanitarian Mine action program 45

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History Chart (FY 1993–2009) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

MINE ACTION PROGRAMS (SIDEBARS)

Center for International Stabilization and Recovery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s International Emergency Refugee Health Branch . . . . . . . . . 19

International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Mine Detection Dog Center for South East Europe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Organization of American States. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Regional Centre on Small Arms and Light Weapons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

U.S. Agency for International Development’s Leahy War Victims Fund. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

U.S. Department of Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Research & Development Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

U.S. Department of Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Training Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

U.S. Department of State Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

BAck cover

View from atop the moutains in Albania between 

the towns of Elbasan and Tirana as storm clouds 

approach. ©istockphoto.com/Dave Long
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

In 2009, the Department of State continued to lead the international donor community in providing 

assistance for the clearance of landmines and other explosive remnants of war, as well as the destruction of 

at-risk and unsecured weapons and munitions, by providing $130 million in aid to 32 countries. Although 

significant progress has been made over the last decade, including several countries which have been declared 

mine impact-free, there still remains much to do to make the world a safer place for everyone.

This ninth edition of our annual report, To Walk The Earth In Safety, describes the programs and 

achievements of our conventional weapons destruction efforts. Where this document once referenced only 

our work in what we call humanitarian mine action, the report has now been expanded to include coverage 

of our efforts to destroy excess, loosely secured, or otherwise at-risk small arms and light weapons and related 

munitions, as well as partnership with a number of countries aimed at improving security at weapons and 

munitions storage sites around the world. 

None of this is done alone. The Department of State works closely with the Department of Defense, the 

United States Agency for International Development and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

in the Department of Health and Human Services. The United States Government also works with other 

governments and international organizations to coordinate efforts, enact stricter controls on weapons, 

and provide assistance to victims of landmines and unexploded ordnance. We also engage civil society in a 

Public-Private Partnership program to raise awareness and expand resources for humanitarian mine action. 

Our shared commitment to the cause is reflected in the passion of these individuals and organizations, 

and together, we augment the work of other donor nations and international organizations, and help raise 

awareness of these issues. 

The United States is proud to be the world’s single largest financial supporter of efforts to address these 

threats, as well as the positive contributions of these programs to help countries promote stability and set the 

stage for post-conflict reconstruction and development. Since 1993, the United States Government has led all 

international donors in providing a total of nearly $1.8 billion to clear landmines and unexploded ordnance 

and treat accident victims. This total investment will grow as we continue to address the problem of surplus 

weapons and munitions. I invite you to read this report to learn about the United States’ programs and what is 

being done to allow everyone “to walk the Earth in safety.” 

Andrew J. Shapiro

Assistant Secretary

Bureau of Political-Military Affairs

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 1

A Message from Assistant Secretary Andrew J. Shapiro
2 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

The United States’ Conventional 

Weapons Destruction Program

Explosive remnants of war (ERW), at-risk small arms and light weapons (SA/LW), 

including man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS), and unsecure or unstable 

conventional munitions pose both a national security threat and a humanitarian 

threat. The Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA) addresses these hazards 

comprehensively through its Conventional Weapons Destruction Program. 

© Lucian Read/Small Arms Survey

Newest product of the illicit weapons industry. Danao, Philippines.

S p e c i a l R e p o rt
Around the world, post-conflict battlefields are littered with 

more than unexploded landmines and other ERW. Caches and 

makeshift stockpiles of weapons and ammunition also remain. 

In active war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, items in these 

stockpiles can be transformed into improvised explosive devices 

(IEDs) that insurgents can use against National Government 

and Coalition Forces. These items pose a grave threat to the 

innocent civilians who must return to live and work in these 

areas. In the developing world, weapons storage facilities that 

were once well outside of the confines of a city in relatively 

isolated areas are now encroached upon by population growth 

and urban expansion. Depot explosions that occurred in Gerdec, 

Albania and Maputo, Mozambique killing more than 100 and 

injuring more than 600, are stark examples of what can happen 

when such accidents occur. National governments, agencies and 

domestic and international organizations must have the funding, 

training, and flexibility to mitigate these threats.

While PM/WRA has traditionally addressed all of these issues, 

we realize that the lines between ERW, at-risk weapons, and 

munitions have become blurred over time. For this reason, our 

programs and funding have merged into a more comprehensive 

approach called Conventional Weapons Destruction (CWD). 

CWD groups the funding of programs for the clearance of 

landmines, unexploded ordnance (UXO), and ERW, the 

destruction and demilitarization efforts for SA/LW, MANPADS, 

and conventional munitions, as well as efforts to increase physical 

security and stockpile management (PSSM). This combined 

CWD approach ensures that all of these items will be handled at 

the same time to reduce the humanitarian and national security 

risks. By consolidating these separate programs into one, we offer 

ease and flexibility of funding and allow program implementers 

to address multiple threats simultaneously. A more detailed 

discussion of the various elements of the U.S. Conventional 

Weapons Destruction Program follows.

Formally established in 1993, the interagency U.S. 

Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) Program is the largest and 

one of the world’s longest standing such programs. PM/WRA, 

acting on behalf of the Department of State, partners in this 

effort with the Department of Defense (DOD), the United 

States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Through 

this interagency effort, the United States remains the world’s top 

contributor to HMA, contributing tens of millions of dollars 

Erik Tollefson MAG Burundi Ken Underwood, EOD Solutions

A team of military engineers exiting a minefield in Chile.

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 3

MANPADS (SA-7s) being prepared for destruction in Montenegro.

A physical security team improves the security of a police armory’s window in BURUNDI.
annually to rid the world of landmines, the majority of which 

have been manufactured and employed by other countries and 

foreign combatants. The HMA program operates worldwide 

to clear landmines and ERW, further develop mine-clearance 

technology, train deminers in affected countries, provide minerisk education, and provide survivors’ assistance. 

The program focuses on three major “pillars:” (1) mine detection 

and clearance, (2) mine-risk education, and (3) survivor assistance. 

Mine detection and clearance includes the systematic process of 

identifying hazardous areas through Landmine Impact Survey (a 

community-based national survey that measures the impact of 

the landmine problem), reducing those areas through Technical 

Survey (a detailed study that confirms the extent of the ERW 

problem), and then clearing the known contamination. Mineand ERW-risk education involves teaching local citizens how to 

recognize landmines and explosive remnants of war and instructing 

them to inform demining authorities of the presence of such hazards 

in order to reduce casualties. Survivor assistance takes the form 

of medical and rehabilitative services, as well as reintegration and 

support services, for both the victims and their families. 

International law states that those who lay mines identify 

the types of landmines emplaced, and map their locations for 

removal at the end of hostilities. While U.S. law prohibits U.S. 

Forces from clearing other countries’ mines, the humanitarian 

demining partnership between the Department of State and 

DOD is critical. Through the Humanitarian Demining Training 

Center, DOD trains host-nation forces to build capacity and 

carry out demining operations in a sustainable and costeffective manner. DOD’s Humanitarian Demining Research 

and Development Program provides new technologies to 

increase the level and efficiency of clearance operations. 

USAID, through the Leahy War Victims Fund and Bureau 

of Humanitarian Response, works to improve the mobility, 

health, and social integration of the disabled, including 

landmine survivors. The CDC’s International Emergency 

and Refugee Health Branch provides technical and financial 

support to nongovernmental organizations and United 

Nations agencies for public-health projects and activities 

related to surveillance for ERW-related injuries, mine-risk 

education, and survivor assistance. 

4 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

A U.N. peacekeeper from the U.N. Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo examines AK-47 magazines stored in a warehouse in Beni in North Kivu.

United Nations Photo/Martine Perret
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 5

© Sean Sutton/MAG

A deminer in CAMBODIA dons the necessary protective equipment before beginning her work.
6 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

The United States is also the global leader in fighting the 

illicit trafficking of small arms and light weapons (SA/LW)

and conventional munitions. Many countries have stockpiles 

of aging, often unstable, weapons and munitions dating back 

to the Cold War (or even earlier) that are no longer needed 

for their national security. Not only do these stockpiles and 

weapons pose a major public-safety hazard in populated areas, 

they create an environmental threat. Since they are also often 

poorly secured, these weapons and munitions are easy targets 

for terrorists, criminals, and insurgent groups. PM/WRA helps 

develop and implement U.S. policies regarding these threats, 

and executes programs to destroy excess and surplus weapons 

and munitions as well as to secure those items identified as 

required for national security. 

The U.S. works to improve global and national mechanisms 

for controlling weapons by assisting states in improving their 

export-control practices, providing physical security and 

stockpile management (PSSM) for at-risk arms and munitions 

depots, and destroying excess weapons around the world. These 

efforts include supporting initiatives of the United Nations and 

other international and regional organizations to address illicit 

transnational arms transfers through the marking and tracing 

of SA/LW and strengthening controls on arms brokers. If a 

nation requests assistance, PM/WRA and the Defense Threat 

Reduction Agency (DTRA) work closely with the host nation to 

offer technical assistance on PSSM issues, develop and execute 

cost-effective projects that meet the needs of the requesting 

government, and promote regional security. These efforts have 

resulted in the destruction of over 1.3 million at-risk weapons 

and 50,000 tons of unstable and unsecure ammunition.

Man-portable air-defense systems, or MANPADS (also 

referred to as shoulder-fired, surface-to-air missiles), are small, 

light, and easy to transport and conceal. Assessments of total 

global MANPADS production to date exceed one million, with 

thousands believed to be outside of government control. The 

Department of State estimates that since the 1970s, MANPADS 

were employed against more than 40 civilian aircraft, resulting 

in at least 28 crashes and more than 800 deaths worldwide. After 

the November 2002 attempted shoot-down of a civilian airliner 

in Kenya with MANPADS, the United States intensified its 

already considerable efforts to keep these weapons from falling 

into the wrong hands. 

Countering the proliferation of MANPADS is an 

overriding U.S. national security priority. At the direction 

Obsolete munitions ready for destruction in NICARAGUA.

OAS Mine Action Program
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 7

U.S. Department 

of State Office of 

Weapons Removal 

and Abatement 

The Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department 

of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA) was founded in 

October 2003 to develop, implement, and monitor efforts that contribute to 

post-conflict recovery by eliminating humanitarian risks from conventional 

weapons. PM/WRA works within a local, regional, and international context 

to promote peace, stability, and prosperity by mitigating the negative effects 

brought by the proliferation of conventional weapons of war. Furthermore, 

PM/WRA works to remove and destroy weapons that continue to pose 

hazards in post-conflict environments.

There are three pillars of PM/WRA’s mission: curb the illicit trafficking 

and indiscriminate use of conventional weapons of war that contribute to 

internal instability; pursue such weapons and help the clean-up efforts that 

occur in post-conflict settings; and engage civil society to expand support 

for U.S. efforts abroad. Landmines, unexploded ordnance, man-portable 

air-defense systems also known as MANPADS, and other small arms/light 

weapons and conventional munitions are some of the weapons PM/WRA

addresses, with the goal of limiting their humanitarian impact and 

availability to criminal and terrorist groups.

The office also provides grants for many humanitarian and research 

projects. Half of PM/WRA’s humanitarian assistance is provided 

through grants to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), which carry 

out numerous initiatives and programs around the world. In addition, 

through public-private partnerships, PM/WRA works with more than 

60 NGOs, civic groups, educational institutions, and philanthropic 

foundations to help make the world safe from the threat of illicit 

weapons. Organizations such as the Danish Deming Group, The HALO

Trust, MAG (Mines Advisory Group), and the United Nations Mine Action 

Team collaborate with PM/WRA to create a multilateral approach to mine 

action and weapons mitigation.

Point of Contact:

Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement (PM/WRA)

U.S. Department of State

Bureau of Political-Military Affairs

SA-3, Suite 6100

2121 Virginia Avenue, NW

Washington, D.C. 20522 

USA

telephone: 

+1 202 663 0100

facsimile: 

+1 202 663 0090

web site:

www.state.gov/t/pm/wra

PM/WRA

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 7

of the White House, a MANPADS 

interagency task force was created in 

2007 that coordinates the efforts of 

the Department of State, Department 

of Defense, Department of Homeland 

Security, and other federal agencies and 

organizations. Within the Department 

of State, the Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) and the 

Bureau for International Security 

and Nonproliferation collaborate to 

reduce the threat of illicit proliferation 

of MANPADS. The DOD provides 

expertise to other countries on the 

proper management and control of 

MANPADS through DTRA, and 

enforces stringent physical security and 

accountability for MANPADS in U.S. 

possession. This concerted, interagency 

approach has resulted in the destruction 

of over 32,000 MANPADS worldwide 

since 2003.

The United States has provided 

mine-action assistance to more than 80 

countries since 1993, and it continues 

to provide the most financial support 

for landmine removal, CWD and PSSM 

projects in the world—$1.8 billion since 

the USG HMA Program began. Often, 

even after a country has met its “end 

state” and has been rendered free from 

the humanitarian impact of landmines 

and UXO, the USG continues to provide 

limited funds and technical assistance. 

Because of the impossibility of clearing 

every landmine in every affected country 

or region, the United States believes that 

humanitarian mine action should focus 

on making the world “mine-impact free,” 

or free from the humanitarian impact of 

landmines, and the USG continues to 

work toward a goal to allow everyone “to 

walk the Earth in safety.”
8 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Many countries in Africa are plagued by landmines and explosive remnants of war. Children in Zambia, a mine-impact free country, can travel to school safely, but those in SUDAN like this little girl are not as lucky.
The African 

continent covers 

about 30.2 million 

square kilometers 

(11.7 million 

square miles). It is 

home to around 

15 percent of the 

world’s population. 

Although Africa

has abundant 

natural resources, 

it is the poorest 

continent in the 

world. There are 

many reasons for this, including the numerous tribal and military 

wars that have injured, killed or displaced millions of civilians as a 

result of landmines and explosive remnants of war.

Canary Islands

Madeira

Islands

Azores

Reunion

Mayotte

A t l a n t i c

O c e a n

Indian

Ocean

Atlantic

Ocean

Mediterranean Sea

Black Sea

Red Sea

Persian

Gulf

Gulf of Aden

Bay of

Biscay

Zimbabwe

Zambia

Uganda

Tunisia

Togo

Tanzania

Swaziland

Sudan

South Africa

Somalia

Sierra

Leone

Seychelles

Senegal

Sao Tome & Principe

Nigeria

N i g e r

Namibia

Mozambique

Morocco

Western Sahara

(Occupied by Morocco)

Mauritania

M a l i

Madagascar

L i b y a

Liberia

Lesotho

Kenya

Guinea

Ghana

Gambia

Gabon

Ethiopia

Eritrea

Equatorial Guinea

Egypt

Dijbouti

Cote d'Ivoire

Republic

of Congo The Democratic

Republic of Congo

Comoros

C h a d

Central Africa Republic

Cameroon

Burundi

Burkina Faso

Botswana

Benin

Angola

A l g e r i a

Guinea-Bissau

Malawi

Rwanda

A f r i c a

9

Angola. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Burundi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Democratic Republic of the Congo. . . . . . . . . . . 11

Ethiopia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The Gambia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Guinea-Bissau. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Kenya. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Mozambique. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Republic of the Congo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Somalia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Sudan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

©iStockphoto.com/Randy Plett Photographs
10 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$1,373,773 to clear 460,000 

square meters of land and 

conduct 400 explosive ordnance 

disposal (EOD) emergency 

response missions

	 •	Norwegian People’s Aid:

$1,426,721 to clear 700,000 

square meters, reduce 80 

suspected hazardous areas, and 

complete 120 EOD emergency 

response missions

	 •	The HALO Trust (HALO):

$3,430,000 to clear 36 hectares and 

another 504,000 square meters of 

land, 400 kilometers of road, and 

survey/re-survey 200 sites 

	 •	HALO: $1,083,000 for three

Weapons and Ammunition 

Destruction (WAD) teams to 

destroy up to 60,000 weapons 

and 180 tons of munitions

In addition, the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Research 

and Development (HD R&D) Program, 

in partnership with HALO, continued a 

technology evaluation of the Rotary Mine 

Comb (RMC) in Angola. Intermeshing tines 

on the RMC’s two rotors gently extricate large 

buried objects, including anti-tank mines, 

from the soil and push them to the side of the 

host vehicle’s path. HALO reports positive 

clearance results with the RMC in sandy soil, 

clearing 20 kilometers of road since 2008. 

Angola

Angola’s landmine and unexploded ordnance 

(UXO) problem is a product of four decades 

of continuous conflict, beginning with a war 

of independence in the 1960s and followed 

by a 30-year civil war, rendering the country 

extremely hazardous. Landmines and UXO 

prevent the normalization of daily life by 

creating an obstacle to humanitarian assistance 

and slowing the country’s economic recovery. 

Across all 18 provinces, the socioeconomic 

impact on Angolan communities was assessed 

during a Landmine Impact Survey; results 

confirmed that mines and explosive remnants 

of war (ERW) affect more than 2 million 

people in 1,968 villages. Moreover, Angola has 

an estimated 2 million at-risk, military-type 

small arms and light weapons (SA/LW) in 

civilian hands and many more in unsecured 

government stockpiles. 

Since 2002, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) has spent more 

than $3 million to help Angola destroy surplus 

weapons and ammunition, and provided a 

total of $69,651,647 in humanitarian mineaction and SA/LW support through FY2009.

In FY2009, PM/WRA contributed $6.23 

million in humanitarian mine-action support 

to Angola, resulting in the clearance of 900 

kilometers of road and more than 1.2 million 

square meters of land. This figure includes 

the following activities:

With total assistance valued at $850,000, the 

HD R&D Program also provided HALO 

with funding for evaluations of a heavy 

detonation trailer and a JCB Loadall.

Burundi

Despite an end to its decades-long civil war 

and transition to democracy in 2005, the 

vast quantity of poorly secured small arms 

circulating throughout Burundi has left the 

country with a soaring crime rate and stunted 

economy. The United States has assisted the 

government of Burundi with the destruction 

of excess man-portable air-defense systems 

(MANPADS) and small arms and light 

weapons (SA/LW), as well as with a project to 

improve the security of military stockpiles.

Since FY2006, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) has provided 

$1,278,438 in assistance to Burundi. U.S. 

Government assistance has supported minerisk education and the destruction of 312 

MANPADS, thousands of small arms, and 

tons of munitions. 

In FY2009, PM/WRA granted $419,515 

to the nongovernmental organization 

Bridgeway Group to install 20 police armories 

in the communes of Kinama, Cibitoke, 

and Kamenge. The project provides secure 

weapons storage facilities at police posts, in 

addition to training for weapons custodians in 

the two most violent communes in Bujumbura. 

Also in FY2009, explosive ordnance 

disposal (EOD) and medical personnel from 

the U.S. Department of Defense’s United 

States Africa Command conducted a two-week 

training mission that trained 35 humanitarian 

mine-action instructors and 26 medical 

instructors from the Burundian Defense Force 

(BDF) and provided the following:

	 •	$34,135 in reconnaissance/

demolition training equipment 

	 •	$24,000 for inert ordnance

training aids

	 •	$15,514 in medical equipment

for the BDF training

A f r i c

a

Land in use by local beneficiaries following clearance by The HALOTrust in Huambo province, ANGOLA. The HALO Trust
Regional Centre 

on Small Arms and 

Light Weapons

Located in Nairobi, Kenya, the Regional Centre 

on Small Arms and Light Weapons (RECSA) 

aims to coordinate action against small arms/light 

weapons (SA/LW) proliferation in Africa’s Great Lakes and Horn of Africa 

regions, and the bordering states. The organization’s mission is to achieve 

a peaceful, safe, and secure African subregion free of arms proliferation. 

RECSA’s core activities involve preventing, combating, and eradicating 

stockpiling and illicit trafficking of SA/LW. Arising from the 2000 Nairobi 

Declaration on the Problem of Illicit Small Arms and Light Weapons 

in the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa, RECSA provides a 

comprehensive institutional disarmament framework to combat the 

availability of SA/LW that cooperates with national focal points in its 

member states of Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, 

Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, Seychelles, 

Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. 

RECSA’s goals are guided by the implementation of the Nairobi 

Declaration. Objectives for fulfilling the Declaration include developing 

governmental, civil, and donor partnerships, raising public awareness, 

building police and law enforcement capacities, and coordinating interagency action to combat SA/LW proliferation and enhance the prospects 

of sustainable regional development.

In July 2009, RECSA held a regional seminar on SA/LW brokering 

in Rwanda with U.S. sponsorship to initiate dialogue and open channels 

of cooperation between member states to further enhance SA/LW 

brokering control measures. RECSA also hosted the 5th Regional Civil 

Society Forum in Tanzania, held in September 2009, to provide a seminar 

for interaction and exchange of information between civil society and 

national focal points on current activities to address regional proliferation 

of illicit SA/LW.

Point of Contact:

Angela Baiya-Wadeyua 

Communication Officer

RECSA

PO Box 7039-00200

Nairobi

Kenya

web site: 

www.recsasec.org

 telephone: 

+ 254 020 3877456

+ 254 020 3876023

facsimile: 

+ 254 020 3877397

e-mail: 

info@recsasec.org

RECSA

In January 2009, a representative from 

the Defense Threat Reduction Agency 

(DTRA) SA/LW Team and the PM/WRA 

Program Manager took a tour of a potential 

police armory construction site, a military 

logistics base, and several police armories. 

The military wanted to continue engagement 

with PM/WRA and DTRA, and requested 

additional physical security and stockpile 

management upgrades and training at 

outlying facilities. This was followed in April 

2009 by a DTRA policy visit and assessment 

of several arms and ammunition storage sites 

in Burundi. The DTRA team made several 

recommendations and a senior military official 

subsequently requested technical seminars 

for his people so they could recognize and 

properly implement recommended changes.

Democratic Republic 

of the Congo

The ongoing landmine and explosive remnants 

of war problem in the Democratic Republic 

of the Congo (DRC) is in large part due to a 

protracted conflict that began as a full-scale, 

nationwide war in 1996 and continues on a 

much smaller scale in particular areas of the 

country. Additionally, excessive quantities of 

military small arms and light weapons (SA/

LW) have become abundant through illegal 

arms trafficking, resulting in increased crime 

throughout the country. 

Since FY2006 the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) has contributed 

$4.24 million to SA/LW destruction and 

awareness, of which $4.12 million went to 

MAG (Mines Advisory Group). These grants 

for the removal and destruction of unsecured 

and abandoned SA/LW by MAG, including 

an additional $937,400 for FY2009, will 

continue through April 2010. As of January 

2010, MAG had destroyed over 102,000 

weapons and nearly 315 tons of excess and 

unstable munitions in the DRC.

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 11
12 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

A f r i c

a

Victims Fund’s implementing partner, 

International Polio Victims Response 

Committee, finished its final year of a threeyear grant. This grant provided treatment 

opportunities and access to mobility and 

orthopedic services and equipment for people 

with disabilities in Kinshasa and Bunia.

Ethiopia 

In FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund provided $2 million to 

Ethiopia as follows:

	 •	International Committee of

the Red Cross (ICRC)/Special 

Fund: $1 million for physical 

rehabilitation of survivors in two 

centers: Bahir Dar and Dessie

	 •	ICRC/Ethiopia: $1 million for

physical rehabilitation of survivors 

in 31 rehabilitation centers in 28 

countries in Sub-Saharan Africa

The Gambia

While The Gambia has not formally noted 

a problem with landmines and unexploded 

ordnance, unrest in the neighboring Casamance 

region of Senegal has reportedly resulted in 

some landmine contamination. Between 1999 

and 2008, there were three landmine casualties 

reported, and an influx of refugees from 

Senegal in 2007 prompted the government 

to provide landmine-risk education to 

Gambian border communities.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the Department 

of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) included $20,520 as part of a 

grant to Handicap International, operating 

in Senegal’s Casamance region, for the Nova 

Scotia Gambia Association (NGSA), a 

nongovernmental organization, to provide 

mine-risk education (MRE) and raise 

awareness in 43 Gambian border communities 

and 25 border schools as well as youth groups, 

other communities, and female-only schools. 

The intent is to reduce the potential threat of 

mine accidents, particularly among children. 

NSGA has been using a trained drama troupe, 

Gambian Armed Forces, and community 

cinema, as well as schools and youth groups to 

provide these MRE messages.

Guinea-Bissau

The War of Liberation in 1963–74, followed 

by internal conflict in 1998–99, and various 

periods of military activity along GuineaBissau’s borders have resulted in the country’s 

contamination by landmines and explosive 

remnants of war (ERW). Between FY2000 

and FY2009, the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) and the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Research 

& Development (HD R&D) office together 

provided more than $4.7 million dollars in 

humanitarian mine action and battle area 

clearance assistance. 

These efforts supported the return of 

over 240 acres of land for safe use, the 

conduct of a national Landmine Impact 

Survey, and improved skills of demining 

and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) 

personnel working for the indigenous 

nongovernmental organization HUMAID. 

PM/WRA also reduced the threat posed to 

local communities by unstable stockpiles by 

supporting the destruction of nearly 106 tons 

of that country’s excess military munitions.

In FY2009, PM/WRA provided a total of 

$1 million in assistance as follows:

	 •	HUMAID: $682,000 to continue

humanitarian demining and 

clearance of ERW

	 •	Cleared Ground Demining:

$318,000 to support a roving 

EOD and military stockpile 

destruction team

Kenya

The boundless availability of illicit military 

small arms and light weapons (SA/LW) 

undermines security in Kenya and impedes 

efforts to address regional conflict. The 

Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement 

in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau 

of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA) 

supports Kenya and its regional neighbors 

by funding the Regional Centre on Small 

Arms (RECSA), which is located in Nairobi, 

Kenya. Since 2006, PM/WRA has provided 

$717,850 to RECSA as follows: 

	 •	From 2006–08, $499,500 to

RECSA to combat the illicit 

proliferation and trafficking of 

SA/LW in the Great Lakes and 

Horn of Africa regions

	 •	$218,350 in 2009, which allowed

Angola, the Central African 

Republic, the Republic of the 

Congo (Brazzaville) and Zambia to 

obtain SA/LW-marking machines 

Mine-risk education being conducted in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Arne Hodelic
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 13

Mozambique

Prior to the early 1990s, Mozambique endured 

30 years of conflict, leaving the country littered 

with landmines and explosive remnants of war 

(ERW). Thanks in part to the United States 

and other donor nations, great progress has 

been made toward helping Mozambique 

become free from the humanitarian impact 

of landmines and ERW (“impact free”). 

Progress made in Mozambique is evidenced 

by the fact that in 2008, according to the 

2009 edition of the Landmine Monitor Report

(LMR), the Mozambican National Demining 

Institute recorded nine mine/ERW casualties, 

down from 47 reported casualties in 2007. 

The 2009 LMR, however, also stated that 

over 12,164,041 square meters of land were 

still contaminated as of December 2008. 

U.S. humanitarian mine-action assistance has 

continued in the meantime. In 2008, the four 

northern provinces were declared free from the 

humanitarian impact of landmines. Demining 

in the remaining six provinces continues. 

Since the 1990s, the United States has 

invested over $40 million to help Mozambique 

become impact free. In FY2009, the Office of 

Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) provided $2.1 

million to help Mozambique complete the 

development of its national demining capacity 

and assess the remaining landmine/ERW 

threat. PM/WRA’s assistance was as follows:

	 •	$2,000,000 to The HALO Trust

(HALO) to conduct humanitarian 

mine clearance in the provinces of 

Maputo, Manica, and Tete

	 •	$124,000 to HALO to survey the

extensive barrier minefields on the 

Mozambique/Zimbabwe border

Also in FY2009, explosive ordnance 

disposal (EOD) and medical personnel from 

the U.S. Department of Defense’s United 

States Africa Command conducted a 14-day 

training mission to Mozambique which 

trained 17 EOD instructors and 6 medical 

personnel from the Forcas Amadas da Defesa 

De Mocambique (FADM) and provided the 

following training equipment:

	 •	$32,620 in EOD reconnaissance

and demolition tools

	 •	$11,860 in medical equipment

Republic of the Congo

Between 1993 and 1999, three major conflicts 

displaced approximately 810,000 people and 

caused widespread killing and looting in the 

Republic of the Congo (RoC). Arms obtained 

by the main militia groups were reportedly 

looted from police and military depots. 

Successfully recovered weapons and munitions 

were later stored in unsecured government 

depots in populated areas, posing a significant 

security threat. These ammunition stores would 

create a serious public safety and health hazard 

if they were to catch on fire or spontaneously 

detonate. Given the gravity of the situation 

in the RoC, it is projected that continued 

funding will be required to support additional 

weapons destruction and assist in creating 

safe storage at the weapons depots. 

Since FY2007, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) has provided $1.32 

million to the nongovernmental organization 

MAG (Mines Advisory Group) to complete 

Technical Surveys of contaminated ammunition 

depots in Brazzaville and Dolisie-Kimongo 

and to destroy ammunition stockpiles. 

In FY2008 and FY2009, PM/WRA 

provided MAG with an additional $884,000 

to continue the destruction of excess/obsolete 

weapons and ammunition. Between September 

2008 and September 2009, MAG destroyed 

more than 75 tons of munitions and 159,000 

ordnance pieces. This project has not only 

facilitated the destruction of excess and 

hazardous military stockpiles but has also 

contributed to the development of the national 

armed forces’ capacity to carry out conventional 

weapons destruction and stockpile management.

Somalia

As a result of major ongoing conflicts 

since 1964, landmines, explosive remnants 

A f r i c

a

The 2009 grant to RECSA enabled 

more African states to mark their arms 

stockpiles. This grant established more 

effective weapons-inventory practices and 

facilitated the tracing of weapons in support 

of the implementation of national obligations 

under the United Nations International 

Tracing Instrument and various regional 

protocols on SA/LW. FY2009 funding to 

RECSA also supported fact-finding missions 

examining surplus stockpiles of SA/LW and 

munitions, as well as in-country seminars 

on controlling brokering and man-portable 

air-defense systems. In addition, PM/WRA, in 

partnership with RECSA, other regional and 

subregional organizations, nongovernmental 

organizations, and the United Nations, 

sponsored a workshop in Kigali, Rwanda, 

July 6–7, 2009, to examine illicit small-arms 

brokering in the Horn of Africa and the Great 

Lakes Region. Consequently, Member State 

delegates committed themselves to establishing 

brokering controls in their home countries.

In September 2009, at the request 

of the United Kingdom’s Humanitarian 

Peace Support School (HPSS), the United 

States Defense Threat Reduction Agency 

(DTRA) Small Arms and Light Weapons 

Branch conducted a seminar in Kenya to 

Kenyan Wildlife Service and Kenyan Police 

instructors on updates to the 2008 Physical 

Security and Stockpile Management (PSSM) 

executive seminar materials. This follow-up 

session was designed to train HPSS staff to 

present DTRA-produced PSSM seminar 

modules at future Eastern African states’ 

PSSM seminars at the HPSS facility.

Also in FY2009, explosive ordnance 

disposal (EOD) personnel from the U.S. 

Department of Defense’s United States Africa 

Command conducted a 14-day training 

mission that trained 16 Kenyan Humanitarian 

Mine Action instructors at the HPSS, and 

provided the following:

	 •	$32,000 in demining

reconnaissance/demolition 

training equipment

	 •	$24,156 in inert ordnance

training aids
14 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Sudan

Landmines, explosive remnants of war 

(ERW), small arms/light weapons (SA/LW), 

and other hazardous conventional munitions 

adversely affect many parts of Sudan as a result 

of a 21-year civil conflict between the North 

and South. The signing of the Comprehensive 

Peace Agreement on January 9, 2005 brought 

an end to the widespread civil war, facilitating 

the arrival of a United Nations mission and 

large-scale humanitarian assistance. At the 

request of the United Nations Mine Action 

Office (UNMAO) in Sudan, a Landmine 

Impact Survey was conducted; it concluded 

last year that 18 of 25 Sudanese states are 

affected by mines and ERW.

Since FY2003, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) has provided 

$19,541,964 in conventional weapons 

destruction assistance to Sudan. These 

funds have enabled operational support 

and clearance in south-central Sudan as 

well as management capacity development 

and training through the United Nations 

Development Programme (UNDP) and 

Cranfield University. Humanitarian 

mine-action support has included fielding 

clearance, explosive ordnance disposal 

(EOD), and mine-risk education (MRE) 

teams in the Nuba Mountains and southern 

Sudan. SA/LW funding has concentrated 

on weapons-cache eradication, resulting 

in the destruction of more than 50 metric 

tons of SA/LW munitions and ordnance 

items, including 25 man-portable airdefense systems.

In FY2009 PM/WRA funding to Sudan 

totaled $4.6 million as follows:

	 •	Cranfield University: $300,000

to provide senior and middle 

management training to employees 

of Sudanese national authorities, 

National Mine Action Center 

(NMAC) and South Sudan 

Demining Authority (SSDA). 

Funding also supports the 

development of national mineaction performance indicators 

and measures to track progress in 

achieving full national ownership. 

	 •	DanChurchAid: $499,964

to support EOD/battle-area 

clearance/manual demining/

survey activities for an expanded 

multi-task team in the Nuba 

Mountains to reach a minimum 

of 50,000 beneficiaries, and 

to coordinate an MRE- and 

community-liaison (CL) team 

that delivers approximately 250 

MRE/CL sessions, reaching an 

estimated 40,000 Sudanese. 

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$1 million to provide an 11-person 

EOD/SA/LW team to cover at least 

240 spot tasks in Greater Equatoria 

and to support the South Sudan 

Disarmament, Demobilization 

and Reintegration Commission 

as required. MAG also received 

$500,000 to provide MRE and CL 

to an estimated 24,000 returnees 

and internally displaced persons 

in South Sudan, and for the 

weapons collection/reporting of 

approximately 120 danger areas. In 

addition, MAG received $600,000 

for threat reduction and survey in 

Blue Nile state and Kassala through 

the summer of 2010. 

A f r i c

a

of war (ERW), and other hazardous 

conventional munitions adversely affect 

many parts of Somalia. Illicit conventional 

weapons and small arms/light weapons 

trafficking is widespread; many weapons 

travel through the ill-defined border with 

Kenya. Significant levels of contamination 

along the Ethiopian border and southern 

clan areas still exist, and abandoned 

stockpiles are routinely found in the 

vicinity of civilian populations. The United 

Nations and leading nongovernmental 

organizations operating in Somalia have 

concluded that unexploded ordnance and 

abandoned stockpiles constitute a greater 

threat than minefields.

In FY2009 the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) provided more 

than $1.4 million in funding to implement 

the following:

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$762,600 grant for conventional 

weapons clearance and 

destruction in conflict-affected 

regions of Somalia 

	 •	 The HALO Trust: $700,000

grant for humanitarian mine 

clearance in Somaliland

	 •	Julia Burke Foundation:

$59,962 grant for ammunition 

survey of Somaliland

Preparing for stockpile destruction in Sudan. Åsa Wessel
	 •	UNDP: $500,000 to provide

comprehensive management, 

technical support, and training to 

NMAC and SSDA authorities to 

design, strengthen, and consolidate 

institutional and management 

capacities, develop national 

standards, and implement the 

Mine Action Transition Plan with 

technical assistance from UNDP 

and UNMAO. 

	 •	Norwegian People’s Aid: $1

million to continue EOD, BAC, 

and survey teams in Equatoria and 

Upper Nile, and to conduct route 

survey and complete spot EOD/

BAC tasks as necessary in Jonglei.

	 •	Sudanese Integrated Mine

Action Service (SIMAS): 

$200,000 to Sudan’s only 

national nongovernmental 

organization fully accredited to 

international standards for the 

development of a civil-society 

humanitarian demining capacity 

at a functional level. Since first 

receiving PM/WRA funding in 

FY2008, SIMAS has matured 

considerably, and in addition to 

conducting manual-demining 

activities, it is now also certified 

to conduct mobile EOD 

activities, including BAC and the 

removal of hazardous abandoned 

ordnance caches. 

	 •	In addition, the U.S. Department

of Defense’s Defense Threat 

Reduction Agency (DTRA) 

conducted a physical security and 

stockpile management (PSSM) 

assessment as well as a PSSM 

Technical Seminar in September 

2009 for approximately 50 

participants from the Sudan 

People’s Liberation Army, 

reaching a wide audience that was 

grateful for the orientation and 

expressed interest in continuing a 

relationship with DTRA. 

U.S. Agency for International 

Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund

First established in 1989 by Senator Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vermont), 

USAID’s Leahy War Victims Fund (LWVF) aims to respond to the needs 

of civilian victims in war-affected countries. The LWVF aids persons with 

disabilities, particularly those who have sustained mobility-related injuries 

from unexploded ordnance (UXO) and anti-personnel landmines. In 

addition, the LWVF provides assistance for other direct and indirect causes 

of disability, such as preventable diseases that may arise from interrupted 

immunization campaigns during or following a war.

During 2009, the LWVF provided $13 million for programs to help 

those victims with physical disabilities as a result of civil strife and 

warfare. The majority of the funds collected by the LWVF are allotted 

for affordable prosthetics and orthotic services, in addition to essential 

medical, rehabilitation, and vocational assistance for landmine victims. 

The LWVF is comprised of dedicated individuals who work closely 

with Congress to manage the funding implementation. Since its 

establishment, the LWVF has disbursed over $165 million to 30 countries 

in sub-Saharan Africa, Central America, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, 

South Asia, and Southeast Asia. 

Over the years, the LWVF has expanded its scope beyond caring 

for only those who need immediate aid. It also designs and implements 

development programs that address the changing needs of the 

populations while establishing the foundations for sustainable services in 

developing countries. The LWVF strives to strengthen the quality of care 

for survivors, ensuring that the treatment and equipment provided are 

used effectively to increase the mobility of disabled persons in conflictaffected countries.

Point of Contact:

Lloyd Feinberg, Manager

Leahy War Victims Fund

U.S. Agency for International 

Development

Washington, D.C. 20523 

USA

telephone: 

+1 202 712 5725

e-mail: 

lfeinberg@usaid.gov

web site: 

www.usaid.gov/our_work/

humanitarian_assistance/the_funds/

USAID LWVF

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 15
16 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Thailand’s borders are all contaminated with landmines as a result of previous conflicts. Forests along the borders pose the greatest dangers, but croplands, pastures and water sources are also affected.
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

A S IA

Asia is the largest continent and home to 60 percent of the world’s 

population. Each war-affected country has a slightly different story about 

how it came to be contaminated by landmines and other explosive 

remnants of war, but the results are the same—people continue to be 

injured or killed long after the conflict ends, leaving a large population 

of survivors who require substantial support and assistance. 

N e w G u i n e a

Timor

B o r n e o Celebes

Sumatra

Java

Northern

Mariana

Islands

Guam

Mayotte

South China

Sea

Sea of Okhotsk

Philippine

Sea

Sea of Japan

(East Sea)

Red

Sea

Mediterranean Sea

Banda Sea

Java Sea

I n d i a n O c e a n

Gulf of

Andaman Thailand

Sea

Gulf of

Carpentaria

Yellow

Sea

Timor

Sea

Pacific Ocean

East China Sea

Black Sea

Bay

of Bengal

Arabian Sea

Arafura Sea

Vietnam

Uzbekistan

Turkmenistan

Thailand

Tajikistan

Sri Lanka

Madagascar

Singapore

R u s s i a

Philippines

Australia

Palau

Pakistan

Nepal

Mongolia

Malaysi Malaysia a

Laos

Kyrgyzstan

South

Korea

North

Korea

Kazakhstan

Japan

I n d o n e s i a

India

Comoros

C h i n a

Cambodia

Myanmar

(Burma)

Brunei

Bhutan

Bangladesh

Afghanistan

Taiwan

Timor Leste

(East Timor)

17

©iStockphoto.com/chictype

Afghanistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Cambodia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Laos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Philippines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Sri Lanka. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Tajikistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Thailand. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Vietnam. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
18 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

A sia

Afghanistan

Afghanistan has endured conflict since 1979 

and remains severely affected by landmines, 

unexploded ordnance (UXO), and other 

loosely secured or illicit conventional 

weapons and munitions. The widespread, 

indiscriminate use of mines during more than 

30 years of conflict has turned Afghanistan 

into one of the most heavily mined 

countries in the world. Insurgent elements 

in the South continue to use landmines 

and explosive remnants of war (ERW) as 

improvised devices to target civilians and 

shape battlefield movements. The threats 

remain: An average of 50 civilian casualties 

occurs each month and mine-action 

implementing partners are often attacked 

by insurgents in the South, West, and East. 

Although the Mine Action Program in 

Afghanistan has cleared almost two-thirds 

of all suspected hazardous areas to date, vast 

amounts of land remain contaminated due 

to lack of capacity, ongoing conflict, and 

inaccessibility due to difficult terrain and 

deteriorating infrastructure. 

Despite the challenges, a positive 

development in U.S. assistance to 

Afghanistan has been the creation of 

community-based demining initiatives. 

Unlike most mine-action projects in 

Afghanistan where trained deminers come 

from elsewhere to remove landmines and 

UXO, community-based demining utilizes 

a local workforce that is recruited, trained, 

and employed by Afghan nongovernmental 

organizations (NGOs), in close partnership 

with community leaders, to survey and 

clear explosives. These projects can last 

for several months, providing income 

and economic opportunity to hundreds 

of families. When this communitybased demining project ends, follow-on 

agricultural and vocational training, as well 

as immediate development projects, can 

commence, allowing locals to capitalize 

on their cleared land and an available 

labor force with new job skills. Since 

these demining projects are planned, 

coordinated, and run in conjunction with 

local tribal leadership from the beginning, 

community priorities are taken into 

account before a project is initiated. 

In FY2009, funding to Afghanistan 

by the Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) totaled nearly $27.85 million. 

This funding supported the following:

	 •	$15.45 million to five Afghan

NGOs—Afghan Technical 

Consultants, Mine Clearance 

Planning Agency, Demining 

Agency for Afghanistan, 

Organization for Mine Clearance 

and Afghan Rehabilitation, and 

the Mine Detection Center—to 

conduct sustained clearance 

operations, develop host-nation 

management and technical 

capacity, provide vocational 

training, and develop new 

community-based demining 

initiatives that partner with 

village elders and employ 

local staff in some of the 

most difficult and dangerous 

environments in Afghanistan. 

	 •	Nearly $7.2 million to DynCorp

International to assist with 

the operation of seven Afghan 

Conventional Weapons 

Destruction teams, technical 

assistance, and host-nation 

management and technical 

capacity development. 

	 •	$3.89 million to international

NGOs, including The HALO 

Trust (HALO), NATO 

Maintenance and Supply 

Agency, the Information 

Management Mine Action 

Program, and the Marshall 

Legacy Institute, to continue 

their work in Afghanistan. 

	 •	$1.31 million to Clear Path

International (CPI) to implement 

a victim-assistance (VA) and 

community-based physical and 

socioeconomic rehabilitation 

program for ERW accident 

survivors and persons with 

disabilities. CPI partners with more 

than six Afghan NGOs that work 

in the disability and VA sectors.

In FY2009, the U.S. Department 

of Defense’s Humanitarian Demining 

Research and Development Program, 

in partnership with HALO, continued 

evaluations of equipment valued at 

$520,000. The equipment includes 

the Orbit Screen, which sifts minecontaminated soil, several sifting excavator 

attachments, and the Mantis, an armored 

Women teachers participate in an awareness training session in Kabul, Afghanistan. UNICEF, Shehzad Noorani
area-preparation and mine-clearance 

tractor. The Mantis system includes 

a suite of tools for breaking up soil, 

reducing metal clutter, sifting soil, and 

rolling suspect areas. More than 20,000 

mines have been recovered or destroyed 

in operations supported by the Mantis. 

The sifting technologies continue to clear 

mines in high-priority tasks in villages and 

agricultural areas throughout Afghanistan. 

Cambodia

As a result of nearly three decades of 

conflict, Cambodia continues to be one of 

the most severely landmine- and explosiveremnants-of-war (ERW) affected countries 

in the world. Heavy mine contamination 

began during the 1960s when civil war 

broke out between the government and 

the Khmer Rouge, and continued until 

the latter’s victory in 1975. During the 

Vietnam War, American forces added to 

the contamination during the course of 

extensive air and ground combat operations 

in the eastern regions of Cambodia. In 

1978, Vietnam invaded Cambodia and 

drove the Khmer Rouge forces back to the 

Thai-Cambodian border, and in an effort 

to prevent the return of the Khmer Rouge, 

the Cambodian government created the 

K-5 mine belt, a densely mined barrier 

along the Thai border. Despite those 

efforts, Khmer Rouge guerrilla groups 

continued operations in Cambodia until 

their surrender in 1997, adding their 

own unmapped minefields for short-term 

defensive purposes.

As a consequence of the mine and ERW 

contamination, Cambodia has seen high 

civilian casualty rates despite the cessation 

of conflict. Casualty rates have come down 

sharply in recent years as a result of the 

gradual deterioration of some types of mines, 

as well as the intense clearance operations 

funded by the United States and other 

donors in Cambodia.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

The U.S. Centers for Disease 

Control and Prevention’s 

International Emergency 

Refugee Health Branch

The International Emergency and Refugee Health Branch (IERHB), 

part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, provides 

public-health assistance and interventions in the context of war and 

other humanitarian emergencies. Some of that work has focused on the 

prevention of injuries that result from armed conflict.

Since 2002, personnel from IERHB have worked in a variety of 

conflict and post-conflict settings, assisting with the development of injury 

surveillance systems, the implementation of health assessments and crosssectional surveys, and the provision of assistance to victims of war-related 

injury. These settings have included countries such as Afghanistan, Bosnia 

and Herzegovina, Colombia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iraq, Liberia, Mozambique, 

Nepal, and Sri Lanka.

During the last fiscal year, IERHB has provided over $3 million to a 

number of international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, 

and universities to implement programs or conduct research on topics 

related to injury and armed conflict. For instance, IERHB provided funds 

to UNICEF for the development of a training program and materials for 

mine-risk educators to improve their analytic skills and ability to effectively 

evaluate the impact of their programs. IERHB has worked closely with 

UNICEF and the World Health Organization in developing systems to 

monitor injury trends in conflict and post-conflict settings. In addition, 

Harvard University is using funds provided by IERHB to assess the 

psychological and economic impact of demining on communities in 

Lebanon and Angola.

Point of Contact:

Michael Gerber

Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention

4770 Buford Highway

Atlanta, GA 30341

USA

telephone: 

+1 770 488 0695

e-mail: 

mcg9@cdc.gov

web site: 

www.cdc.gov

CDC

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 19
20 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

	 •	HALO: $45,000 grant to match

contributions from Rotary 

International for the fielding 

and equipping of an additional 

demining team.

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$1,088,000 grant to support 

clearance operations conducted 

by manual deminers, mechanical 

vegetation cutters, Bozena and 

Tempest flails, community liaison 

teams, and mobile EOD teams.

	 •	MAG: a $500,000 grant to obtain

HSTAMIDS detectors.

	 •	Landmine Relief Fund: $100,000

in an initial grant to support 

the clearance operations of an 

indigenous nongovernmental 

organization, Cambodian SelfHelp Demining.

	 •	Golden West Humanitarian

Foundation: $300,000 in 

continued funding for its 

Explosive Harvesting Program, 

in which explosives are removed 

from locally-obtained munitions 

and packaged into charges for use 

by demining and UXO operators.

	 •	Spirit of Soccer: $80,000 grant to

continue its youth MRE program, 

linking awareness education with 

soccer skills and sports role models.

	 •	Michigan State University: $77,788

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) supported a 

range of mine-action and ERW projects, 

including: 

	 •	DynCorp International:

a $2,180,160 contract to 

manage, disburse, and monitor 

U.S. financial support for the 

operations of Demining Unit 

No. 3 of the Cambodian Mine 

Action Centre (CMAC), as 

well as to administer training, 

equipment, and advice to 

the unit’s multiple teams. 

The contract also provides 

for developmental support 

and advisory services to the 

Cambodian demining and 

unexploded ordnance (UXO) 

authorities.

	 •	The HALO Trust (HALO):

$1,100,000 in grants for 

support and provision of 

advanced Handheld Standoff 

Mine Detection System 

(HSTAMIDS) detectors to 

manual demining teams, and 

support to additional explosive 

ordnance disposal (EOD), 

survey, mine-risk education 

(MRE), and mechanical teams 

for continued work along the 

K-5 mine belt.

grant to develop an MRE game.

	 •	Clear Path International: $50,000

victims’ assistance grant to operate 

a survivors’ co-op rice mill.

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund (LWVF) continued to 

support Veterans International’s efforts 

to manage three previously established, 

full-service rehabilitation clinics and 

community follow-up work generated by 

these clinics.

In addition, the U.S. Department 

of Defense’s Humanitarian Demining 

Research and Development (HD R&D) 

Program has worked for many years in 

Cambodia, providing technologies valued 

at more than $2.5 million for operational 

field evaluations with the CMAC, 

HALO, MAG, and the Golden West 

Humanitarian Foundation. 

	 •	Since 2006, HALO, MAG, and

beginning in FY2009, CMAC, 

have integrated the dual-sensor 

HSTAMIDS in their manual, 

anti-personnel (AP) mineclearance operations of densely 

cluttered minefields. In total, the 

HSTAMIDS operations have 

cleared 1.6 million square meters 

of minefields and recovered 

12,400 AP mines. 

	 •	In FY2009, the HD R&D

Program provided hand-held, 

power tools to augment the 

speed of the HSTAMIDS 

preparatory and clutter 

investigation processes.

Also during FY2009, the HD R&D 

Program initiated the evaluation of 

STORM, an area-preparation and mineclearance excavator capable of operating 

on steep slopes and rough terrain. 

The HD R&D Program continued 

operational field evaluations of the 

Tempest vegetation cutting flail, excavator 

soil-sifting attachments, the MAXX+, a 

remote-controlled mini-excavator, and the 

innovative Explosive Harvesting System.

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Golden West Humanitarian Foundation

LEFT: This is the prototype mold that will be used to see if molding explosives can be a viable option to create 

explosive charges. The mold cuts down on production costs and time as it preforms the end product into its exact size 

and weight required by the deminers, instead of the current method which involves pouring the explosives into a pan 

and cutting them into “brownies.” RIGHT: This is the first test run of the new explosive molding system using inert resin 

as a casting agent instead of live explosives. Initial tests showed good results as the charges were released from the 

mold easily and still retained a lot of the detail within the mold and its engravings.
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 21

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Laos

The majority of Laos’ extensive explosive 

remnants of war (ERW) contamination 

and its smaller landmine presence stems 

from the Vietnam War era. During the 

prolonged U.S. air campaign against the 

North Vietnamese forces operating in 

Laos, the U.S. military dropped over two 

million tons of bombs; up to 30 percent 

of some types of these aerial munitions 

failed to detonate on impact. Large land 

battles were also fought inside Laos, 

adding artillery, grenade, and other types 

of weaponry to the complex mix of ERW 

contamination. Additional contamination 

also occurred during Laos’ civil war from 

1962 to 1975.

Human presence is increasing in 

ERW-contaminated areas due to post-war 

population growth and other socioeconomic 

factors. Besides posing a threat to the 

Laotian people in the affected areas, ERW 

limits their access to agricultural land, 

disturbs traditional land-use patterns, and 

impedes other economic development. 

In 1996 the government established 

UXO Lao as the national organization to 

systematically address the ERW problem, 

and in 2006, the government created the 

National Regulatory Authority (NRA) 

as the policy-level body for all aspects of 

that effort. Since clearance operations 

began, at least 186 types of munitions 

from all former combatants have been 

located, highlighting the complexity of the 

operational challenges.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) supported 

a wide range of clearance, mine-risk 

education, and victims’ assistance projects 

in Laos, including:

	 •	ArmorGroup North America:

$253,815 in funding under a 

continuing contract to develop 

the capacity of the NRA through 

management and financial 

training, and to provide for the 

operating costs of UXO Lao in 

conducting clearance, technical 

survey, and community-awareness 

programs in several provinces.

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$850,000 in grants in support 

of its operations, which included 

training and managing teams to 

conduct unexploded ordnance 

(UXO) clearance, technical 

survey, and community liaison.

	 •	Fondation Suisse de Deminage

(Swiss Foundation for Mine 

Action or FSD): $348,900 grant 

to establish improved quality 

assurance capabilities for the Lao 

national mine/UXO action sector, 

and to provide advanced explosive 

ordnance disposal training to 

technicians from UXO Lao.

	 •	Norwegian People’s Aid:

$400,000 grant to conduct UXO 

survey and clearance operations 

in Sekong province.

	 •	World Education, Inc.: two

grants totaling $400,000 to 

support an extensive riskeducation program, and provide 

for survivors’ medical, economic, 

and technical assistance. The 

latter program is designed to 

improve the living situation 

of ERW survivors and their 

families, as well as provide 

training for health, agricultural, 

and vocational training officials 

to enable them to better serve the 

needs of ERW survivors. 

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund (LWVF) continued to 

support Catholic Relief Services in Laos as 

part of a three-year grant which began in 

2006. The project was designed to work 

in three districts in Laos to improve and 

expand education and community support 

systems to assist in providing educational 

opportunities for disabled children. LWVF 

also awarded another $280,000 threeyear grant in January 2009 to Handicap 

International to improve the quality of life 

of people with disabilities, their families, 

and communities, and continued to 

support the efforts of World Education 

to train medical personnel to address the 

legacy of war injuries in Chamassak and 

Suvanakhet provinces.

Philippines

In FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

A CAMBODIAN landmine survivor’s feet next to an inert landmine. Wendell Phillips/CIDA
22 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Victims Fund continued to support a twoyear grant to Handicap International in the 

Philippines that began in 2008. The grant 

was designed to support the integration 

of persons with disabilities into the 

socioeconomic life of their communities by 

improving their mobility and providing them 

with access to development opportunities.

Sri Lanka

Landmines and explosive remnants of war 

(ERW) extensively contaminate Sri Lanka 

as a result of more than two decades of 

armed conflict between the government of 

Sri Lanka (GSL) and the Liberation Tigers 

of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), an organization 

which has sought a separate homeland in 

the north and east. Due to a collapse of the 

2002 cease-fire agreement in mid-2006, 

conflict intensified, resulting in additional 

and unsurveyed mine/ERW contamination 

by the time the war ended in 2009, with 

the northern Jaffna region most severely 

affected. Today, this contamination 

continues to pose a challenge for economic 

reconstruction and the resettlement of 

people displaced by the conflict. 

In 2009, the LTTE was defeated by the 

GSL following a major military campaign. 

As of March 12, 2010, it is estimated that 

nearly 94,000 internally displaced persons 

(IDPs) still reside in camps located in the 

Vavuniya and Jaffna districts. There remains 

an urgent need to resettle thousands of 

IDPs and release agricultural land for 

planting seasonal crops. These and other 

humanitarian and stabilization activities are 

hindered by the presence of ERW.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) provided grants 

to four organizations to conduct surveys and 

clearance operations in order to support the 

quick and safe resettlement of IDPs as follows:

	 •	$1.6 million to Fondation Suisse 

de Déminage (Swiss Foundation 

for Mine Action or FSD) 

	 •	$1.3 million to Danish

Demining Group 

	 •	$2.5 million to The HALO Trust

	 •	$1.2 million to MAG (Mines

Advisory Group) 

In addition, explosive ordnance disposal 

personnel from the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s (DOD) United States Pacific 

Command conducted a 10-day humanitarian 

mine action management and instructor 

refresher course for 26 officers of the Sri 

A sia

Lankan Army. DOD also provided demining 

equipment valued at more than $90,000.

Tajikistan

Ninety-three percent of Tajikistan is 

mountainous terrain with only seven percent 

viable for agriculture production. The mine 

threat in Tajikistan is not only a threat to 

human life but further limits already scarce 

agricultural land, thus negatively affecting 

the social and economic development 

of the country. According to the United 

Nations website, mines and ERW continue 

to threaten the lives and livelihoods of local 

populations; to date, there have been 793 

mine accidents, including 352 fatalities. 

The affected areas can be categorized into 

four regions: north and west along the 

Tajik-Uzbek border; south and east along 

the Tajik-Afghan border; the Garm Central 

Valley Region; and the Tajik-Chinese border 

in some locations. 

In FY2009 no direct funding was provided 

to Tajikistan. However, in coordination with 

the Organization for Security and Cooperation 

in Europe (OSCE) office in Tajikistan, the 

Tajikistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted 

a regional conference, the Facilitation of 

Central Asian Regional Cooperation in Mine 

Action conference, in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. 

The OSCE Office in Tajikistan and the 

International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance supported 

and organized the conference as part of an 

initiative to facilitate regional cooperation in 

mine action in Central Asia. The purpose of 

the conference was to elicit consultations with 

relevant OSCE participating states in Central 

Asia and Afghanistan to achieve consensus 

in supporting the establishment of a regional 

mine-action cooperative mechanism between 

the states. Representatives of Afghanistan, 

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, 

Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan participated 

in the conference. Others attending the 

conference were the European Commission, 

France, Germany, Russia, Slovenia, and the 

United States. This young boy found a cluster bomb in the ground close to his village in TAJIKISTAN while playing with his friends.

Tajikistan Mine Action Centre/Shahrinisso Davlyatova
 U.S. Department of

 Defense’s Humanitarian

 Demining Research and

 Development Program

The United States Department of Defense created the Humanitarian 

Demining Research and Development (HD R&D) Program in Fort Belvoir, 

Virginia, to focus on the development, testing, demonstration, and validation 

of various technologies that increase the safety and efficiency of humanitarian 

demining operations. These include areas such as mine detection, area 

reduction, vegetation clearance, mechanical mine clearance, and mine 

neutralization. The HD R&D Program fulfills its objectives through the 

adaptation of commercial, off-the-shelf technology, the application of 

mature technologies, and the leveraging of current developments from the 

U.S. Army’s counter-mine mission area. The program’s main goal is to field as 

many prototype systems as possible, so the demining community can use 

them to assist in the global landmine problem. Understanding the most serious 

problems facing deminers around the world and then developing applicable 

technology to help overcome these problems is the HD R&D Program’s 

greatest challenge, which is addressed by executing and developing a plan 

that achieves the greatest results in the shortest possible time. 

The program offers a humanitarian demining requirements workshop 

each year to representatives from global governmental mine-action 

centers and nongovernmental organizations, where country assessment 

and needs determine upcoming developmental efforts for prototype 

technology. All prototypes undergo extensive testing and field evaluations 

in actual minefields, which are integral aspects of the HD R&D Program. 

The evaluations allow host countries to operate the equipment and 

determine if it is useful, cost-effective, and efficient. The evaluations also 

provide feedback that could ultimately result in future R&D improvements. 

The HD R&D Program is performing field evaluations of its equipment 

in Afghanistan, Angola, Cambodia, Chile, Ecuador, Tajikistan, and Thailand. 

Some of the technologies being evaluated include the Multi-Tooled 

Excavator, Explosive Harvesting System, Rotary Mine Comb, HSTAMIDS 

Handheld Mine Detector, and the Mini MineWolf.

Point of Contact:

Sean Burke, Program Manager

Department of the Army

RDECOM NVEST

ATTN: AMSRD-CER-NV-CM-HD

10221 Burbeck Road

Fort Belvoir, Virginia 22060

USA

telephone: 

+1 703 704 1047

facsimile: 

+1 703 704 3001

e-mail: 

sean.burke@ nvl.army.mil

web site: 

www.humanitarian-demining.org

HD R&D

The ability of the U.S. to support a 

much more robust and long-term demining 

program in Tajikistan changed significantly 

in FY2009 despite the lack of funding. First, 

Tajikistan requested use of Foreign Military 

Financing (FMF) funding to purchase a 

mechanical demining machine. Second, the 

U.S. Department of Defense’s Humanitarian 

Demining Research and Development 

Program (HD R&D) agreed to provide a 

mechanical demining machine in FY2010 to 

Tajikistan for field evaluations at almost no 

cost while the FMF purchase is coordinated. 

Additionally, Tajikistan requested assistance 

for mine-risk education, training and 

management of minefield operations. The 

U.S. Army Central Command (CENTCOM) 

is planning a four-phase HMA Overseas 

Humanitarian Disaster and Civic Aid project 

to support this request. Finally, Tajikistan’s 

Ministry of Defense established humanitarian 

demining as a strategic goal during the 2009 

Consultative Staff Talks, the joint U.S.-

Tajik Security Cooperation Forum and Plan 

Development workshop. 

Since December 2004, to actively support 

the U.S. CENTCOM security cooperation 

and nonproliferation objectives, the U.S. 

Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) 

Small Arms and Light Weapons (SA/LW) 

branch conducted three assessments and 

three seminars in support of the OSCE’s 

SA/LW and conventional ammunitions 

program in Tajikistan. In addition, as part 

of DTRA’s ongoing support to Tajikistan 

and the OSCE, the DTRA SA/LW Branch 

led an international team to Dushanbe in 

2009 to conduct a technical level physical 

stockpile and security management (PSSM) 

seminar. This seminar on the OSCE’s Best 

Practices on munitions storage safety and 

security was provided to 24 junior officers and 

noncommissioned officers that handle and 

maintain arms and ammunition on a daily 

basis. DTRA expanded its long-established 

relationship supporting the OSCE by also 

inviting PSSM experts from the Austrian, 

Belgian, French, German, Spanish, and Swiss 

Arms Control offices. 

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 23
24 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Thailand

In FY2009, the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining 

Research and Development (HD R&D) 

Program partnered with the Thai 

authorities to continue operational 

field evaluations of several mechanical 

technologies in Thailand. The technologies 

include the small remote-controlled Peco, 

Beaver, and Tempest, and the large-class 

Severe Duty Tractor and Tools and UniDisk excavators. Valued at $1.5 million, 

the technologies are used for vegetation 

clearance and area preparation. Since 

2001, the machines have collectively 

cleared vegetation from more than 6.1 

million square meters of suspect land. To 

learn more about the U.S. Department 

of Defense’s HD R&D Program, visit 

www.humanitariandemining.org.

Vietnam 

A series of conflicts involving France, Japan, 

and the United States from World War II 

through the early 1970s led to Vietnam’s 

heavy contamination by explosive remnants 

of war (ERW). Landmines were also laid, 

especially during periods of military struggle 

in the 1970s with neighboring Cambodia and 

China. The areas of Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, 

and Quang Tri are the most ERW-affected 

provinces. ERW also affects Vietnam’s border 

region with Laos, an area the U.S. intensively 

bombed in an effort to interdict North 

Vietnamese troops and supplies.

The Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) has encouraged mine-action 

organizations to use the findings of the 

PM/WRA-funded Landmine Impact Survey 

(LIS) in Vietnam by mandating that its 

grantees in Vietnam seek survey results. 

The final report of the six-province LIS 

was released in July 2009 and provides 

Vietnam and the donor community with 

vital information regarding the impact of 

landmines and unexploded ordnance 

upon communities. 

On April 29, 2008, the Vietnamese 

government decided to establish the 

Vietnam Bomb and Mine Action 

Centre (VBMAC), which was launched 

on February 23, 2009, under direct 

responsibility of the Ministry of Labor, 

A sia

Invalids, and Social Affairs. VBMAC is 

the national coordinator for clearance 

operations, victim-assistance projects, and 

mine-risk education (MRE). VBMAC

continues to develop its organizational 

and staffing structure; among its first 

priorities are the development of a strategic 

plan and the setting of national standard 

operating procedures (SOPs) in alignment 

with international mine-action standards. 

Both the strategic plan and SOPs will help 

prioritize clearance activities and coordinate 

funding streams to effectively address 

Vietnam’s contamination problem. 

In FY2009, PM/WRA contributed 

$2,120,000 for humanitarian mine action in 

Vietnam, including:

	 •	Vietnam’s Technology Centre

for Bomb and Mine Disposal 

(BOMICEN): $253,815 through 

a contract with DynCorp for 

advanced diving equipment 

for ERW clearance of river 

and coastal waters as part of 

PM/WRA’s program to help 

BOMICEN develop national 

capacity to clear the full range of 

the country’s ERW contamination 

	 •	International Center/Veterans for

America (still identified in Vietnam 

as the Vietnam Veterans of America 

Foundation): $94,631 grant to 

provide technical assistance to 

BOMICEN explosive-ordnance 

disposal (EOD) teams in Nghe 

An province

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$1,100,000 grant for mine/UXO 

clearance to conduct EOD rapidresponse and static-site clearance 

in Quang Binh province

	 •	PeaceTrees Vietnam: $259,017

grant to field EOD response 

teams in Quang Tri province

PM/WRA also allocated $409,965 in 

FY2009 to several organizations for MRE

and victim-assistance programs: 

	 •	The Vietnam Veterans

Memorial Fund’s Project 

Children at a school near Khe Sanh in Central Vietnam receive mine-risk education as part of PeaceTrees 

Vietnam’s program designed to reach ethnic minorities. Quang D. Le / PM/WRA
Point of Contact:

Jonathan D. Green, Director

U.S. Department of Defense

Defense Security Cooperation Agency

Humanitarian Demining Training Center

ATTN: DSCA-PGM-HD

Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri 65473 

USA

telephone: 

+1 573 563 6199

facsimile: 

+1 573 563 5051

e-mail: 

leon.dscapgmhd@conus.army.mil

web site: 

www.wood.army.mil/

HDTC

U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian 

Demining Training Center 

The United States Department of Defense’s Humanitarian Demining 

Training Center (HDTC) is located at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri and 

is the training and information center for the U.S. Humanitarian Mine 

Action (HMA) Program. Established in 1996, the mission of HDTC is 

to train and prepare U.S. Forces for overseas deployment supporting 

the U.S. Government (USG) HMA strategy. HDTC collects, analyzes, 

and disseminates HMA-related information to USG and international 

organizations in support of program and instructional course development, 

which is performed in accordance with USG policy, International Mine 

Action Standards (IMAS), and other open-source documentation. 

Training at HDTC develops ability in HMA training support package 

development and instructional methods to execute train-the-trainer 

sessions in landmine clearance and other explosive remnants of war 

(ERW) mitigation. Training focuses on the deploying force mission, and 

the operational and organizational HMA procedures and practices of the 

host-nation HMA program. Students, upon completion of the two-week 

HMA or ERW course, are required to demonstrate proficiency in subjects 

ranging from U.S. code and USG policy governing the U.S. HMA Program, 

to deminer training tasks in minefield clearance lanes. Recently, HDTC

expanded the curriculum to include battle area clearance for Explosive 

Ordnance Disposal Level 1 training, and basic and advanced combat 

lifesaver courses in partnership with the U. S. Center for Disaster and 

Humanitarian Assistance Medicine. 

HDTC training is supported with Overseas Humanitarian Disaster and 

Civic Aid (OHDACA) funding appropriated through congressional mandate 

and public law. U.S. Forces attending HDTC use OHDACA funding to 

attend HMA resident courses, conduct requirements and pre-deployment 

surveys, and HMA training operations. HDTC equips U.S. Forces with a 

training methodology toolkit to conduct train-the-trainer HMA missions, with 

the vision to “render landmine and ERW-affected countries mine and ERW 

safe via holistic and comprehensive training,” so that others may “walk the 

Earth in safety.”

RENEW: $43,000 grant 

to provide integrated 

humanitarian mine-action 

assistance to several districts of 

Quang Tri province through 

support for Golden West 

Humanitarian Foundation 

	 •	Catholic Relief Services:

$172,567 grant to deploy mobile 

Community Outreach Teams to 

provide MRE on both sides of 

the old Demilitarized Zone

	 •	Clear Path International:

$127,000 grant to provide 

emergency and ongoing medical 

and other assistance to ERW 

survivors and their families 

	 •	PeaceTrees Vietnam: $67,398

grant to conduct mobile MRE

activities in Quang Tri province

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s (USAID) 

Leahy War Victims Fund (LWVF) and the 

USAID/Vietnam Mission continued to 

provide support to Vietnam through five 

multi-year, ongoing grants as follows: 

	 •	Viet-Nam Assistance for the

Handicapped (2005–11): to 

work for the rights of people 

with disabilities 

	 •	Catholic Relief Services (2005–

10): to develop a comprehensive 

model of education and vocational 

training for children and youth 

with disabilities, as well as support 

for information technology 

training for Vietnamese with 

disabilities at schools in Hanoi 

and Ho Chi Minh

	 •	East Meets West Foundation,

Save the Children, and Viet-Nam 

Assistance for the Handicapped 

(2008-11): $300,000 to each 

organization ($900,000 in 

FY2009 funding) to provide 

comprehensive rehabilitation 

services and livelihood assistance 

to people with disabilities in 

Danang City

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 25
26 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Fifteen years after the end of its last conflict, BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA’S capital, Sarajevo, continues to be affected by explosive remnants of war. 
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Europe, covering approximately 10.2 million square kilometers (3.94 

million square miles), is home to about 11 percent of the world’s population. 

Many countries in Europe are littered with anti-personnel landmines, as 

areas such as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, and 

Georgia have all been involved in recent conflict following the break-up 

of the former Yugoslavia. Poorly stored munitions in Southeastern Europe 

also present a serious threat to civilian safety and security because the 

weapons become unstable over time and the expansion of urban areas 

means homes are built dangerously close to the storage depots.

Jersey

Guernsey

Corsica

Crete

Rodhes

Sardinia

Sicily

Faroe Islands

Shetland Islands

A t l a n t i c

O c e a n

Norwegian Sea

Barents Sea

North Sea

M e d i t e r r a n e a n S e a

Mediterranean Sea

Baltic Sea

B l a c k S e a

Bay

of

Biscay

United

Kingdom

Ukraine

Turkey

Tunisia

Libya Egypt

Syria

Switz.

Sweden

Spain

Slovenia

Slovakia

Serbia

Kos.

San Marino

R u s s i a

Kazakhstan

Romania

Portugal

Poland

Norway

Neth.

Morocco

Monaco

Moldova

Malta

Macedonia

Lux.

Lithuania

Liech.

Lebanon

Latvia

Jordan Kuwait

Saudi Arabia

Italy

Israel

Ireland

Iraq

Iran

Iceland

Hungary

Greece

Gibraltar

Germany

Georgia

France

Finland

Estonia

Denmark

Czech Rep.

Cyprus

Croatia

Bulgaria

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Bel.

Belarus

Azerbaijan

Austria

Armenia

Andorra

A l g e r i a

Albania

Mont.

South

Ossetia

Abkhazia

 Gaza Strip

West

Bank

Northern Cyprus

Transnistrai

NagornoKarabakh

E U R OPE

27

©BigStockPhoto.com/Orhan Çam

Albania. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Azerbaijan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Bosnia and Herzegovina. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Bulgaria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Croatia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Estonia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Kosovo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Macedonia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Montenegro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Serbia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Ukraine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
28 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY Eu

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Albania

The primary sources of landmine and 

explosive remnants of war (ERW) 

contamination in Albania stem from the 

nearly 50-year dictatorship of Enver Hoxha, 

who built massive stockpiles of Soviet- and 

Chinese-made munitions. Social anarchy 

from 1997–99 led to widespread looting 

of military depots, which caused mines, 

ERW, and abandoned ordnance to be 

littered in the central regions of Albania. 

Yugoslavia’s conflict with Kosovo from 

1998–99 resulted in a lasting legacy of 

landmine, ERW, and unexploded ordnance 

(UXO) contamination along the country’s 

northeastern borders. 

The Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) has been the major contributor 

to humanitarian mine-action efforts in 

Albania since 2001. The U.S. program 

of demining assistance to Albania ended 

at the conclusion of the 2009 demining 

season, which coincided with Albania’s 

announcement at the Cartegena (Colombia) 

Summit on a Mine Free World that it had 

achieved mine-free status. The combined 

results of this nearly decade-long effort saw 

the return to safe use of over 16 million 

square meters of land and the destruction of 

over 12,500 mines and nearly 5,000 items 

of unexploded ordnance. An indigenous 

demining force was developed to deal with 

residual explosive threats under the direction 

of the Albania Mine Action Executive.

In FY2009, PM/WRA contributed:

	 •	Nearly $1 million through the

International Trust Fund for 

Demining and Mine Victims 

Assistance

	 •	More than $550,000 to Handicap

International and ALB-AID, 

an Albanian nongovernmental 

organization, for risk education 

and victim-assistance efforts.

The 2008 explosion of a military 

ammunition storage facility in the village of 

Gërdec had a tragic humanitarian impact, 

killing 26 and injuring hundreds, as well as 

destroying homes and scattering dangerous 

munitions throughout the surrounding 

countryside. Responding immediately to 

the disaster, PM/WRA provided more than 

$1.3 million for remediation activities in 

the village of Gërdec, clearing terrain and 

removing 37,000 unexploded projectiles as 

of February 2010. PM/WRA continues to 

support this technical and very dangerous 

work, providing funds through a grant to 

the International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance. PM/WRA 

works closely with Albanian Ministry of 

Defense (MoD) officials to reduce the 

enormous stockpile of excess, unstable, 

and otherwise at-risk munitions and 

weapons that pose an ongoing threat to the 

people and security of Albania. Explosive 

ordnance disposal (EOD) experts funded 

by PM/WRA destroyed over 24,000 

mortars in 2009 as part of this ongoing 

demilitarization project. In an effort to 

ensure Albania’s Armed Forces retain the 

ability to address such challenges, this multiyear project includes infrastructure upgrades 

to Albanian facilities that will support 

future demilitarization operations. Going 

forward, PM/WRA expects to support 

related demilitarization activities that will 

be managed through grants to the North 

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) 

Maintenance and Supply Agency, which 

plans to establish a multi-year partnership 

with the Albanian MoD in 2010.

The U.S. Department of Defense 

(DOD) has also been an important 

partner in Albania, building the capacity 

of the Albanian Armed Forces to deal 

with the threat of dangerous munitions 

stockpiles. The DOD provided a U.S. 

Army EOD officer to assist the Albanian 

government with its national ammunition 

demilitarization plan. The U.S. Defense 

Threat Reduction Agency’s (DTRA) 

five ammunition assessment missions to 

Albania bear witness to the challenges the 

government of Albania will continue to 

face. Through coordination with NATO’s 

Headquarters in Tirana, DTRA conducted 

an executive level Physical Security and 

Stockpile Management (PSSM) seminar 

there in October 2008. This seminar 

provided munitions storage safety and 

security best practices and procedures to 

20 officers from the Albanian MoD. Along 

with an expert from the Swiss Verification 

Agency, the DTRA team successfully 

engaged the Albanian participants and made 

additional strides toward improving PSSM 

procedures in Albania. In addition, the U.S. 

European Command Humanitarian Mine 

Action Program sent a U.S. Navy EOD 

Mobile Training Team to train 27 members 

An MDDC team working in Albania. DanChurchAid
of the Albanian Armed Forces in UXO and 

abandoned EOD procedures and emergency 

medical response training for ordnance 

disposal operations. 

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan’s landmine problem is largely a 

result of the conflict with Armenia between 

1988 and 1994. Abandoned Sovietera munitions dumps and unexploded 

ordnance (UXO) also pose a significant 

threat. A Landmine Impact Survey (LIS), 

completed in 2003 by the Survey Action 

Center and International Eurasia Press 

Fund (IEPF), indicated that landmines and 

UXO contaminated 18 of 65 districts in 

Azerbaijan. More than half of the affected 

communities were in the Fizuli region, 

located in the western part of Azerbaijan 

near Nagorno-Karabakh, and in the region 

of Agstafa, where a Soviet Army base was 

located. The LIS did not cover NagornoKarabakh, the Nakhchivan region, or small 

locations to which the military denied 

access. The Azerbaijan National Agency for 

Mine Action (ANAMA) reports that 2,360 

landmine and UXO casualties occurred 

between 1991 and 2008.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) issued nearly 

$2.2 million in grants to support mine-action 

and victim-assistance activities in Azerbaijan. 

These activities include the following:

	 •	ANAMA received a $579,907

grant to support clearance 

activities in Gudzek. 

	 •	An additional $471,872

was provided to ANAMA’s 

Humanitarian Demining 

Emergency Response Team. 

This 16-person team provides 

a quick response to urgent 

requests from mine- and UXOaffected communities. 

	 •	ANAMA received another

contribution of $86,580 to help 

International Trust Fund 

for Demining and Mine 

Victims Assistance

The International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance 

(ITF) is a humanitarian, nonprofit organization devoted to the elimination 

of post-conflict threats, including landmines, explosive remnants of war 

(ERW), and the illicit ownership and use of small arms and light weapons 

(SA/LW), in Southeast Europe and other affected regions in the world.

Established by the government of the Republic of Slovenia in March 

1998, the initial purpose of ITF was to help Bosnia and Herzegovina in 

the implementation of the peace agreement and to provide assistance 

and support for post-conflict rehabilitation. Since its inception, ITF has 

augmented its activities to include the rectification of landmine problems 

and helping landmine survivors with physical and socioeconomic 

rehabilitation across the region of Southeast Europe. ITF was asked for 

assistance by affected countries/donors and has expanded operations 

to other affected regions and countries as well, e.g., Central Asia, Cyprus, 

Latin America, the Middle East, and the South Caucasus.

ITF operates on funds provided by both public and private donors to 

carry out its various duties throughout the world. The U.S. Department 

of State and ITF have an agreement that the United States will equally 

match all donations that are made to ITF by other donors up to the 

amount authorized by the U.S. Congress for this purpose.

As the impact from landmines and UXO in Southeast Europe becomes 

less severe, there is a growing need to support security-sector reform and 

disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programs, and to combat 

violence and terrorism from the illicit ownership and use of SA/LW. Such 

challenges pose a serious threat to human security. ITF is poised to 

address these challenges.

Point of Contact:

Dorijan Maršic, Director

Zabrv 12 / 1292 IG

Slovenia 

EU

telephone: 

+386 1 479 6585

facsimile: 

+386 1 479 6590

e-mail: 

ljubljana@itf-fund.si

web site: 

www.itf-fund.si

ITF

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 29
30 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY Eu

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provide specialized treatment to 

140 mine/UXO survivors. 

	 •	The North Atlantic Treaty

Organization Maintenance 

and Supply Agency (NAMSA) 

received an $880,000 grant to 

continue support of clearance of 

the contamination resulting from 

the explosion of the former Soviet 

ammunition warehouse located in 

Saloglu village. This will permit 

NAMSA, in conjunction with 

ANAMA, to complete planned 

clearance operations. 

	 •	IEPF was awarded $179,825 for

survivors’ assistance in Azerbaijan 

to establish a vocational training 

center for mine survivors and 

clearance retirees in the Terter 

region of Azerbaijan. 

Additionally, the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s United States European Command 

provided over $330,000 in support to 

ANAMA including:

	 •	State-of-the-art media equipment

and training materials for 

mine-risk education of both 

schoolchildren and adults

	 •	Computer equipment to run

the latest version of the United 

Nation’s Information Management 

System for Mine Action

Bosnia and 

Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina is the most mineand explosive remnants of war- (ERW) 

affected country in the Balkans, stemming 

from the 1992–95 conflict associated with the 

breakup of the former Republic of Yugoslavia.

During FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) continued its 

strong support of Bosnian humanitarian 

mine-action operations. PM/WRA provided 

over $4.4 million to fund a combination 

of 44 clearance and 84 Technical Survey 

projects through the International Trust 

Fund For Demining and Mine Victims 

Assistance (ITF), returning over two million 

square meters of land to safe use (313,485 

square meters cleared and 1,938,467 square 

meters released through Technical Survey). 

Infrastructure rehabilitation accomplished 

by these operations included the removal 

of explosive threats from two power lines, 

three industrial zones and sections of five 

roads in rural areas affected by explosive 

threats. These operations were conducted 

in 34 of the 106 municipalities of Bosnia 

and Herzegovina, directly benefitting 

approximately 7,700 inhabitants out 

of the combined population of nearly 

700,000. A total of 276 mines and 94 

pieces of unexploded ordnance (UXO) 

were destroyed in the process. Five local 

commercial demining companies (Detektor, 

UXB Balkans, N&N IVSA, Amphibia, 

and Tehnoelektro) and six local demining 

nongovernmental organizations (CIDC, 

STOP Mines, Pro Vita, BH Demining, 

Demira, and UEM) conducted these 

operations under ITF contracts.

PM/WRA also provided nearly $32,000 

to support mine-risk education (MRE) 

and another $549,000 for victim-assistance 

efforts. One MRE project was conducted 

during 2009 by Positive Play, a local 

nongovernmental organization (NGO), 

which provided services to a total of 1,527 

schoolchildren in eight towns and villages in 

high-risk areas. 

A combination of five local and 

international organizations (Eco Sport 

Group, Miracles, OKI Fantomi, Landmine 

Survivors Network BiH, and the Institute 

for Rehabilitation of the Republic of 

Slovenia [IRRS]) provided medical and 

other rehabilitative services for mine/UXO 

survivors and their families. A total of 15 

victims received medical treatment: 12 by the 

NGO Miracles at its facility in Mostar and 

three by the IRRS in Slovenia. Additionally, 

various types of psychosocial, rehabilitative 

and recreational services were provided by 

these five organizations to 263 victims/family 

members during the course of the year. 

Bulgaria

Bulgaria was affected by unexploded 

ordnance (UXO) following the 2008 

explosion of a government ammunition 

depot at Chelopechene, near Sofia. This led 

to the UXO contamination of surrounding 

areas and has posed an ongoing humanitarian 

threat to civilian populations. 

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) provided 

approximately $698,000 for the destruction 

of excess small arms/light weapons and aged 

Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) clearance of unexploded ordnance at a former 

military site in Gudzek, Azerbaijan. Katherine Baker / PM/WRA
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 31

conventional ordnance associated with the 

Chelopechene ammunition depot explosion. 

The PM/WRA Quick Reaction Force 

(QRF), created in 2008, was sent on its first 

deployment to Bulgaria in response to the 

Chelopechene blast, where the QRF provided 

technical assistance for UXO clearance and 

disposal. Between December 2008 and March 

2009, clearance operations conducted by the 

government of Bulgaria, and supported by the 

QRF, led to the clearance of 38,539 square 

meters and the recovery of 110,416 pieces of 

UXO without accident or injury. 

Croatia

Croatia is the second-most mine-affected 

country in the Balkans, but it has the 

strongest and most diversified indigenous 

demining capability. The Croatian 

government annually sets aside more of 

its national budget for demining-related 

activities than any other mine-affected 

country in the world. 

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of 

Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA) 

contributed $3.36 million through the 

International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF) to 

fund humanitarian mine-action and battle 

area clearance activities in Croatia. These 

included contracts for 18 clearance and 

seven Technical Survey projects supporting 

Mine Detection Dog 

Center for South 

East Europe

Established in December 2002 by the Office 

of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the 

U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA), Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) 

Ministry of Civil Affairs, and the International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance, and endorsed by the South-Eastern 

Europe Mine Action Coordination Council, the Mine Detection Dog 

Center for South East Europe (MDDC) is located in BiH at the former 

Territorial Defense Center in Borci village. The center was created in 

response to the growing need for improved demining methods and the 

need for well-trained, mine-detecting dog teams. For the center’s first 

three years of operation, PM/WRA provided funds for its development, 

but it is now fully self-sustaining. 

The center’s trained staff teaches dogs to detect bombs, explosives, 

mines, and narcotic drugs. In addition to helping persons with disabilities, 

dogs are prepared for search-and-rescue operations for local BiH police 

forces and the Bosnian Border Service. MDDC also proposed a set of 

technical and safety guidelines for working with dogs in the region. Using 

its own mine-detection dog teams, MDDC provides services and support 

for demining operations in Albania, Azerbaijan, BiH, Croatia, Iraq, Kosovo, 

Lebanon, and Serbia.

MDDC also engages in special seminars and workshops, and developed 

a mine-risk education program for rural children. Other activities include 

renting dog teams to organizations and offering support to mine victims. 

MDDC mainly employs German shepherds, Belgian shepherds, and 

Labradors between 13 and 18 months of age. Training time lasts from six 

to eight months or shorter, depending on the dogs’ work environment. 

Since its inception, the MDDC has trained more than 150 dogs. On 

11 November 2009, MDCC completed a successful transfer of seven dog 

teams to the Armed Forces of BiH. PM/WRA provided the funds for the 

donation, as well as the dog equipment. 

Point of Contact:

Marija Trlin

Public and Donor Relations Officer

Mine Detection Dog Center for 

South East Europe

Borci b.b., 88400 Konjic

Bosnia and Herzegovina

telephone: 

+387 36 739 860

e-mail: 

marija.mddc@cob.net.ba

web site: 

www.mddc.ba

MDDC

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 31

DTRA’s Bill Johnson confers with the Croatian Chief M3 

and the Croatian Senior Technical Advisor regarding 

ammunition safety and testing in Croatia. February 

2009. MAJ Greg Phillips, U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency
32 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Estonia

Estonia’s remnants of war (ERW) problems 

date to World War II. In 2007, three 100-

kg aviation bombs were unearthed from 

construction sites in the capital of Tallinn. 

Since then, the U.S. Department of State 

and the U.S. Department of Defense 

have provided various forms of ERW and 

landmine-clearance assistance.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department 

of State’s Bureau of Political-Military 

Affairs (PM/WRA) provided $675,000 to 

purchase seven explosive ordnance disposal 

robots, and improvised explosive device 

and unexploded ordnance (UXO)-related 

training and destruction equipment.

As of early December 2009, the Estonian 

Rescue Board’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal 

Center had responded to 1,414 calls and 

cleared and destroyed over 3,670 pieces of 

UXO. Daily utilization of EOD equipment 

has tripled since early 2008. This overall 

increase in utilization has necessitated aboveaverage field repairs and frequent equipment 

exchanges between bomb groups. 

The U.S. Department of Defense’s 

United States European Command provided 

more than $150,000 in support to advance 

Estonia’s mine-risk education program by 

procuring state-of-the-art media equipment 

and training materials for the mine-risk 

education of both children and adults.

Georgia

Georgia is affected by legacy landmines and 

explosive remnants of war (ERW) as a result 

of inter-ethnic and international conflicts 

in the separatist regions of South Ossetia 

(1988–92) and Abkhazia (1992–93). The 

vast majority of landmines and unexploded 

ordnance (UXO) left from these civil 

conflicts are in Abkhazia. Substantial 

minefields also exist in the Pankisi and 

Kodori Gorges, as well as around former 

Soviet military installations. More recent 

contamination resulted from Georgia’s 

conflict with Russia in August 2008. 

The brief nature of the 2008 conflict 

confined the majority of new ERW 

contamination to a 20-square-kilometer 

high-intensity conflict zone between the 

cities of Gori in undisputed Georgia and 

Tskhinvali in South Ossetia. In 2008, a 

total of 16 villages were contaminated 

with cluster munitions and nine villages 

had a UXO problem in the Shida Kartli 

region. The United States and other 

donors supported the efforts of The 

HALO Trust (HALO), a nongovernmental 

organization, to clear this contamination. 

U.S. Ambassador to Georgia John Bass 

participated in a ceremony on December 

10, 2009, with Georgian Deputy Defense 

Minister Nodar Kharshiladze, Shida Kartli 

Governor Lado Vardzelashvili, and HALO, 

which marked the completion of ERW 

clearance in the Mghvrekisi village, Gori 

district, and throughout much of Shida 

Kartli. This did not include South Ossetia, 

which was inaccessible. Through the 

clearance effort, 8,407 acres of land were 

returned to productive use. 

Eu

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agriculture and resettlement of lands 

cleared of mines. 

As a result of these demining 

operations, 1,300,674 square meters 

of land was cleared of explosive threats 

and another 713,869 square meters was 

released for use through Technical Survey, 

directly benefitting some 450 people in 

15 different municipalities where the 

operations took place. In all, a total of 124 

anti-personnel mines and 329 items of 

unexploded ordnance (UXO) were located 

and destroyed.

These operations were conducted by 

a combination of commercial demining 

companies and nongovernmental 

organizations, including MKA Demining, 

Enigma, Dok-ing, Diz-Eko, Deminka, 

Istrazivac, Rumital, REASeuro, and Tornado. 

PM/WRA also provided nearly 

$100,000 for a mine-risk education project 

through the ITF. This project, conducted 

by the Center for Neohumanistic Studies, 

involved the printing and distribution 

of 15,300 copies of a storybook for 

schoolchildren in 12 towns and villages 

instructing them how to live safely in highrisk explosive-threat areas.

With support from PM/WRA, 

Croatia destroyed 929 man-portable airdefense systems, modernizing its defense 

infrastructure while taking an important 

step to reduce the risk of regional 

proliferation. In recognition of the 

advancements made by Croatia to reduce 

these and other stockpiles, Zagreb was 

chosen as the host city for the May 2009 

workshop that launched the Regional 

Approach to Stockpile Reduction (RASR) 

initiative. The RASR effort will develop 

a dialogue among senior general staff 

and Ministry of Defense officials from 

the region so they can periodically share 

information, advice, and lessons learned, 

as well as coordinate efforts when and 

where appropriate. This MRE poster was used in Georgia following 

the August 2008 conflict which left a large area of 

ground littered with unexploded ordnance. It reads: 

“Dangerous! Dont touch! It kills!!!” The HALO Trust
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 33

United States’ Defense Threat 

Reduction Agency

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is a combat support 

agency for the United States Department of Defense. First established 

in October 1998, DTRA aims to reduce the global threat of weapons of 

mass destruction (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and highyield explosives). DTRA accomplishes this by mitigating these weapons’ 

effects and by providing capabilities to reduce, eliminate, and counter 

the threat. To effectively carry out its mission, DTRA is comprised of 

several offices and enterprises, each with their own specific objectives 

and responsibilities. 

DTRA became involved with small arms/light weapons (SA/LW) 

removal in 2001. The SA/LW branch of DTRA aims to reduce proliferation 

by aiding foreign governments with security improvements and the 

management of state-controlled stockpiles of man-portable air-defense 

systems, SA/LW, and conventional ammunition. 

The organization is able to do this by employing teams of SA/LW 

experts to provide foreign governments with assessments and technical 

advice, while also orienting them with the best practices for physical 

security and stockpile management. As a result of this, the efforts of the 

SA/LW branch have decreased the availability of weapons to terrorists and 

insurgents, reduced cross-border weapons transfers that threaten regional 

stability, and lowered the risk of ammunition accidents.

Since 2001, the need for the DTRA SA/LW branch has increased 

significantly due to the types and number of SA/LW missions that 

have developed. Today, the SA/LW branch provides assistance to 

over 50 countries. 

Point of Contact:

Defense Threat Reduction Agency 

DTRA Public Affairs

8725 John J. Kingman Road

Stop 6201

Fort Belvoir, Virginia 22060-6201

USA

telephone: 

800-701-5096

e-mail: 

salw@dtra.mil

web site: 

www.dtra.mil

DTRA

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 33

Similar to elsewhere in the former Soviet 

Union, Georgia possesses a large stockpile of 

aging and obsolete weapons and munitions. 

Conventional munitions destruction, both 

bilaterally and through the North Atlantic 

Treaty Organization (NATO), began in 2008 

and is scheduled to continue through 2012.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) contributed 

$4.762 million to the following programs 

in Georgia:

	 •	HALO: $3,046,785 grant to

complete work in Shida Kartli and 

to continue clearance in Abkhazia

	 •	NATO Maintenance and Supply

Agency: $500,000 to support an 

Estonian-led NATO Partnership 

for Peace Trust Fund to train and 

equip the Georgian military to 

undertake ERW clearance 

	 •	Norwegian People’s Aid:

$168,362 to survey Poti harbor 

for ERW contamination 

	 •	State Military Scientific-Technical

Center DELTA (National 

Georgian entity): $1,158,381 

to assist with the destruction 

of Georgia’s excess and aging 

conventional munitions, including 

the destruction of more than 

1,600 tons of various munitions 

Kosovo

Kosovo declared its independence from 

Serbia on 17 February 2008. In the 

1990s, while still part of the Federal 

Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY), hostilities 

between FRY security forces, the Kosovo 

Liberation Army, and North Atlantic Treaty 

Organization (NATO) airstrikes led to the 

significant presence of landmines, booby 

traps, unexploded cluster munitions, and 

other explosive remnants of war (ERW) 

in Kosovo. As a result of international 

assistance efforts, to which the U.S. was 

a major contributor, in 2001 the United 
34 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY Eu

r op

e

Nations declared that Kosovo was free 

from the humanitarian impact of mines. 

However, not all the ERW were removed, 

and with considerable U.S. support, an 

indigenous demining force was created 

within the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) 

to further reduce the remaining residual 

explosive threat to the civilian population. 

In January 2009, the responsibility for 

demining operations passed to the Kosovo 

Security Force, which will commence 

full-scale demining operations in 2010 

after completion of an extensive basic and 

refresher training program. 

The Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) has continued to support 

clearance operations in Kosovo through 

the International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF). In 

2009 PM/WRA provided $150,000 to 

fund six mine-detection dog teams from 

the Mine Detection Dog Center for South 

East Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina to 

support clearance operations conducted 

by Mines Advisory Trust, a demining 

nongovernmental organization (NGO) 

operating under the direction of the 

Kosovo Mine Action Coordination Center. 

As a result of these efforts, 71,590 square 

meters of forest land were restored to 

safe use in the vicinity of the towns of 

Gjakove/Djakovica and Decan/Decani, 

with three anti-personnel mines and 21 

UXO destroyed.

PM/WRA also provided more than 

$111,000 to fund a mine-risk education 

(MRE) project conducted jointly by 

two local organizations: the Center for 

Promotion of Education (QPEA, a Kosovo 

Albanian NGO) and Future (a Kosovo 

Serb NGO). During this multi-ethnic 

project, 120 teachers from 29 schools were 

trained in MRE subjects and techniques by 

the end of 2009. These teachers, in turn, 

will become “MRE force multipliers” to 

hundreds of students in the schools they 

serve, and to the larger segments of the 

Kosovo population (such as parents, other 

family members, and friends) associated 

with the schoolchildren. 

Macedonia

Macedonia is affected by landmines and 

explosive remnants of war (ERW) mainly in 

the northwest and southern regions of the 

country. ERW remnants from World War 

I and II span the Macedonian border with 

Greece. Mine and ERW contamination in 

the northwest along Macedonia’s borders 

with Kosovo and Albania remain from 

clashes between government security forces 

and ethnic Albanian insurgents in 2001.

Although Macedonia, for all intents 

and purposes, has reached mine-impact 

free status, the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department 

of State’s Bureau of Political-Military 

Affairs (PM/WRA) provided funding in 

FY2008 for use in conducting a survey 

of underwater explosive threats in Lake 

Ohrid, and providing additional training 

and equipment for Macedonia’s Explosive 

Ordnance Demolition teams responsible 

for the removal and destruction of residual 

explosives threats on Macedonian territory.

In FY2009, the culmination of planning, 

capacity building, and $200,000 in 

assistance provided by PM/WRA resulted 

in the clearance of more than 700 pieces of 

abandoned ordnance. 

Montenegro

As a result of periods of conflict dating back 

to World War I, Montenegro has suffered 

from persistent landmine and other explosive 

remnants of war (ERW) contamination. 

Underwater mines were placed on 

Montenegro’s maritime borders during 

WW II; retreating armies jettisoned large 

quantities of artillery shells and other types of 

explosive munitions in inland waterways and 

bays during both WW I and WW II; and 

during the hostilities of the 1990s, landmines 

were planted along the border with Kosovo 

while North Atlantic Treaty Organization 

airstrikes in 1999 contaminated several areas 

with aerial bombs and cluster munitions. 

In 2002, the Regional Center for 

Underwater Demining (RCUD) was 

established at Bijela, Montenegro, with 

the Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) providing funding through 

the International Trust Fund for Demining 

and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF). The 

RCUD is the only non-military center 

in the world specializing in clearance to 

humanitarian standards, and it also serves 

as the de facto mine-action coordination 

authority for landmine and other ERW 

land-based clearance operations. 

In FY2009, PM/WRA continued its 

longstanding support to both land and water 

clearance operations in Montenegro by 

providing $20,000 to purchase five complete 

sets of diving equipment for the RCUD to 

further its national and regional underwater 

training and clearance operations. 

Additional PM/WRA funding through 

the ITF has supported the reduction of 

excess and outdated munitions held by 

the Montenegrin Armed Forces, which 

contributes to the modernization of the 

Armed Forces, decreases management costs 

for munitions stockpiles, and reduces the 

likelihood of accidental explosions that could 

threaten the civilian population.

In recognition of the advancements 

made by Montenegro to reduce these 

and other stockpiles, Budva was chosen 

to host the second workshop of the 

Regional Approach to Stockpile Reduction 

initiative in November 2009. This effort 

is developing a dialogue among senior 

general staff and Ministry of Defense 

officials from the region so they can 

periodically share information, advice, 

and lessons learned, as well as coordinate 

efforts when and where appropriate. 

While some land- and water-based 

explosive contamination remains, Montenegro 

is largely free of mines and unexploded 
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 35

ordnance. The country is entering the 

sustainment stage of collaborative efforts for 

mine- and other ERW-clearance operations 

and munitions demilitarization. 

Serbia 

Serbia’s persistent landmine and explosive 

remnants of war (ERW) contamination 

began during the dissolving of the Former 

Republic of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. 

North Atlantic Treaty Organization 

air strikes during the campaign to halt 

ethnic cleansing in Kosovo caused further 

contamination. Landmines and ERW from 

previous eras of conflict continue to affect 

communities throughout Serbia as well.

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) provided nearly 

$6.7 million to fund six mine/unexploded 

ordnance (UXO) clearance projects, a survey 

and land release project, and to support 

the demilitarization and destruction of 

munitions and improvements to the physical 

security and stockpile management of 

Serbian facilities. These funds were channeled 

through the International Trust Fund for 

Demining and Mine Victims Assistance in 

close coordination with the Serbia Mine 

Action Center in Belgrade. These operations 

were completed by a combination of local, 

regional, and international demining 

organizations: Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) 

performed the survey and land release work 

while the clearance projects were completed 

by PMC Engineering, a Serbian company 

(two projects); Enigma, a Croatian company 

(one project); and UXB Balkans, a Bosnian 

company (three projects). 

As a result of the clearance operations, all 

of which were conducted in Sid municipality, 

1,162,848 square meters of land were 

returned to safe use, directly benefitting the 

3,900 inhabitants of the villages of Morovic 

and Jamena where the operations took place. 

The explosive threats destroyed during 

the course of these operations totaled 129 

Eu

r op

e

pieces of UXO, 27 anti-tank mines, and 35 

anti-personnel mines. Serbia also destroyed 

over 3,700 man-portable air-defense systems 

(SA-7) systems.

Although initially tasked with surveying 

10 square kilometers, NPA actually 

completed the survey of over 20 square 

kilometers (20,356,049 square meters) 

during 2009. As a result, it is estimated that 

over 6.6 square kilometers will be released for 

use as containing no explosive threats. Of the 

remaining 13.7 square kilometers identified 

as risk areas, it is estimated that 12 square 

kilometers will be targeted for further survey 

and land release processing during 2010.

Ukraine

Ukraine is working to destroy excess 

stockpiles of small arms and light weapons 

(SA/LW), man-portable air-defense systems 

(MANPADS), and munitions under a 

U.S.-led North Atlantic Treaty Organization 

(NATO) Partnership for Peace (PfP) project. 

Seventeen donor countries (in addition to the 

United States) and the European Union made 

financial contributions to the project. They 

are: Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, 

Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, 

Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, 

Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, Turkey, the 

United Kingdom, and the European Union. 

This is one of the largest weapons and 

munitions destruction projects in history, 

and represents the largest PfP project 

undertaken by NATO. The project is in 

response to Ukraine’s request for help in 

eliminating 133,000 tons of munitions and 

1.5 million SA/LW. The stockpiles, mainly 

dating from the Soviet era, pose a potential 

proliferation risk and are a threat to public 

safety and the environment. The proposed 

four-phase project will last a projected 

12 years and will cost approximately $27 

million in donor contributions, with Ukraine 

providing most of the operational and inkind demilitarization costs. Phase 1 will cost 

donors $8.5 million, of which the United 

States contributed $6.442 million, and 

includes plans for the destruction of 15,000 

tons of munitions, 400,000 SA/LW, and 

1,000 MANPADS.

Ammunition destruction began in 

late 2009 with just under 4,500 tons 

destroyed before the end of the year. SA/LW 

destruction restarted in December 2009 

with 10,400 weapons destroyed before 

January 2010. A total of 142,393 weapons 

have been destroyed and the project will 

continue into 2010. 

Dave Diaz (left) and MAJ Sulev Suvari (right) lead a brainstorming session on ways to promote regional cooperation on 

stockpile reduction at the first workshop on Regional Approaches to Stockpile Reduction in Southeast Europe held in 

CROATIA in May 2009. Laurie Freeman/PM/WRA
36 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

A child and a young llama travel in the mountains near Cuzco, Peru.
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Netherlands

Antilles Aruba

Ilha de Marajo

Falkland Islands

Isla Grande de Chiloe

Isla Wellington

Tierra Del Fuego

Staten Island

South Georgia

A t l a n t i c

O c e a n

P a c i f i c

O c e a n

C a r i b b e a n S e a

Atlantic

Ocean

V e n e z u e l a

Uruguay

Trinidad & Tobago

Suriname

St Vincent &

The Grenadines

St Lucia

Peru

Paraguay

Panama

Nicaragua

Guyana

Grenada

French

Guiana

Ecuador

Costa

Rica

Colombia

Chile

B r a z i l

B o l i v i a

Barbados

A r g e n t i n a

Several countries in Latin America are now considered minesafe—Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and Suriname—and Nicaragua 

is nearing completion. Ecuador and Peru plan to be free of the 

impact of mines by 2017, but Colombia, with its ongoing conflict 

and security problem, will likely need more than 10 years to become 

mine-impact free.

L at i n Am e r i c a

37

Chile. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Colombia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Ecuador. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

Peru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

©iStockphoto.com/Brasil2
38 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

L

a

t i n A

m e r i c

a

Chile

Chile was affected by landmines during the 

Pinochet regime in the 1970s. Landmines were 

laid on Chile’s borders with Argentina, Bolivia, 

and Peru, as relations with its neighbors were 

strained at the time. In June 2009, United 

States Southern Command conducted a 12-

day training event that resulted in 24 Chilean 

soldiers and one civilian medical doctor 

receiving quality instruction and orientation 

on applicable International Mine Action 

Standards with emphasis on one-man drills, 

medical support and Technical Surveys. 

In cooperation with the Chilean 

National Demining Commission, the U.S. 

Department of Defense’s Humanitarian 

Demining Research and Development 

Program continued an operational field 

evaluation of one Multi-Tooled Excavator 

and five Air-Spade® demining digging tools 

in FY2009. These technologies represent a 

$450,000 investment to augment Chilean 

mine-clearance activities. In FY2009 the 

excavator cleared 63 anti-tank and antipersonnel mines from 1,900 cubic meters 

of sediment in a challenging riverbed. To 

learn more about the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Program, 

visit www.humanitariandemining.org.

Colombia

Colombia has faced internal conflict for the 

past 40 years, leading to vast landmine and 

ERW contamination. Conflict between nonstate actors such as the Revolutionary Armed 

Forces of Colombia (FARC), paramilitary, 

and government forces have led to 31 of 32 

departments in Colombia reporting incidents 

involving landmines or ERW. The Office of 

Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) continued its 

partnership with the Colombia Campaign 

to Ban Landmines (CCCM) for mine-risk 

education (MRE) in the department of 

Antioquia. In addition, PM/WRA continued 

its support of three emergency response 

teams (ERT) through the Organization of 

American States (OAS). PM/WRA continues 

to support Centro Integro de Rehabilitación de 

Colombia’s (CIREC) Seeds of Hope program, 

which provides prosthetics, physical 

therapy, psychosocial support, educational 

and employment opportunities, as well 

as human-rights training to survivors of 

landmine accidents.

Between 2005 and 2008 the United States 

Government contributed $4.5 million in 

humanitarian mine action (HMA) support for 

Colombia. In 2009, PM/WRA contributed 

an additional $1.68 million to the Colombia 

humanitarian mine-action program as follows:

	 •	OAS: $840,799 for operational

demining team support

	 •	CIREC: $200,000 to the Seeds of

Hope project

	 •	CCCM: $200,000 for MRE

in Antioquia

	 •	CIREC: $145,000 for an Invacare

Wheel Chair training and workshop 

project (first of two years)

	 •	The Polus Center for Social and

Economic Development: $111,090 

for a victim-assistance project

	 •	Center for International

Stabilization and Recovery at James 

Madison University: $87,066 to 

plan, coordinate, and implement 

an international workshop and 

conference in Bogotá 

	 •	Information Management and

Mine Action Programs: $96,602 

for the Colombia Information 

Systems Project to implement 

an information technology 

development project to integrate 

multiple social and economic 

parameters to HMA 

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund (LWVF) provided $1.6 

million in funding to Colombia as follows:

	 •	Arch Angeles: $150,000 for

medical rehabilitation and social 

inclusion of conflict survivors

	 •	CIREC: $300,000 for victim

assistance

	 •	Mercy Corps: $1 million to address

the needs of victims of conflict 

and other people with disabilities 

in Colombia by supporting 

rehabilitation and socioeconomic 

activities and education and training 

for rehabilitation professionals

In addition, United States Southern 

Command trained 23 military deminers, 

focusing on the International Marking System, 

basic humanitarian demining, medical combat 

life support, and Technical Survey. They 

provided equipment worth $10,000.

Ecuador 

As a result of a 1995 border conflict with 

Peru, six provinces in Ecuador were mined, 

namely in the Condor Mountain Range. In 

FY2009, the United States Department of 

Defense’s (DOD) Humanitarian Demining 

Research and Development (HD R&D) 

Program, in cooperation with the National 

Demining Center of Ecuador, the Ecuadorian 

Army Demining Command, and the 

Organization of American States, continued 

technology evaluations along the Ecuador/

Peru border with equipment valued at 

$250,000. The Tempest, a remote-controlled 

vegetation-clearance system, completed 

its two-year evaluation in FY2009, having 

assisted with the clearance of access lanes to 

seven suspect areas in the dense jungle. To 

reach the final suspect areas in the region, 

deminers began evaluating hand-held power 

tools, provided by HD R&D, as a logistically 

sustainable and efficient system to open access 

lanes. The HD R&D Program also approved 

Peru-Ecuador border: A deminer works to 

remove persistent landmines on an overcast day 

under triple canopy.

OAS Mine Action Program
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 39

Organization of 

American States

The Organization of American States 

(OAS) officially formed with the signing 

of the Charter of the OAS in 1948. All 

35 independent states of the Americas 

have ratified the OAS Charter, with another 63 

permanent observer countries (including the European Union) 

contributing to OAS programs. 

The goal of the OAS is to promote democracy, security, 

development, and human rights in the Western Hemisphere through the 

use of political dialogue and cooperation. The OAS is also involved in 

carrying out mandates established during the Summits of the Americas, 

multilateral meetings on issues such as corruption, terrorism, the drug 

trade, and poverty. 

The OAS supports demining in Central and South America, where 

numerous member countries continue to suffer the negative effects of 

landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW). To assist with 

the removal of hundreds of thousands of anti-personnel mines, the OAS 

established the Comprehensive Action Against Antipersonnel Mines, or 

Acción Integral contra las Minas Antipersonal (AICMA) in 1991. Funded 

entirely by donors such as Belgium, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, 

Norway, Spain, and the United States, AICMA supports humanitarian 

demining, victim assistance, mine-risk education, stockpile destruction, 

and promotion of the Ottawa Convention in the Americas. With the 

help of AICMA, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and Suriname are 

now deemed mine safe. In addition, Nicaragua is nearing completion 

of its demining tasks. Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru are still undergoing 

demining, with Ecuador and Peru aiming to meet their Ottawa 

Convention obligations by 2017 and Colombia expected to request a 

10-year extension to its March 2011 deadline.

Point of Contact:

Carl E. Case, Director

Office of Humanitarian Mine Action

Organization of American States

1889 F Street NW

Washington, D.C. 20006 

USA

telephone: 

+1 202 458 3631

e-mail: 

ccase@oas.org

web site: 

www.aicma.oas.org

OAS

the provision of a mine-hardened Backhoe, a 

commercial Orbit Screener (soil sifter), and a 

commercial Komplet Rock Crusher for 2010 

deployment in Ecuador’s Rio Chira area. To 

learn more about the HD R&D Program, 

visit www.humanitariandemining.org.

Peru

Peru was affected by landmines following 

conflict with nonstate-actor groups, 

including Sendero Luminoso (SL) and the 

Movimiento Revolucionario Túpac Amaru

(MRTA), which ended in 1992, and conflict 

with Ecuador in 1995. Peru has mines 

in some areas of the country that were 

emplaced in the 1980s to protect hightension electricity pylons against attacks 

from SL and MRTA. Mines were also 

planted around three maximum security 

prisons to prevent prisoners from escaping 

between 1993 and 1996, and around police 

anti-narcotics bases as a defensive measure. 

Due to armed conflict with Ecuador in 

1995, parts of Peru’s shared border and the 

Condor Mountain Range in the Amazon 

basin are affected by landmines and explosive 

remnants of war (ERW), mainly unexploded 

ordnance. More recently, SL elements have 

used homemade, improvised explosive 

devices and booby traps in the drugproducing valley of the Apurimac and Ene 

rivers and in the Upper Huallaga Valley.

In 2009, the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) provided around $2 million 

in contractor support to strengthen Peru’s 

National Mine Action Authority and to 

conduct demining operations. PM/WRA 

also granted $150,000 to The Polus Center 

for Social & Economic Development, Inc. 

to conduct a victim-assistance training and 

coordination project in Peru. United States 

Southern Command provided to Peru 

equipment worth $34,000 and trained 30 

military deminers in basic humanitarian 

demining, mine-risk education, and 

Technical Survey.

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 39
40 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Boy with his sister in Thula, YEMEN. November 2009.
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

Some countries in the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabia, are oilrich, while others, like Yemen, have few natural resources within their 

territory. Many Middle Eastern countries depend on agriculture and 

light manufacturing for their populations’ livelihoods. Riddled with strife, 

the region has historically been a hotbed of civil, religious, and military 

wars, which have left the area strewn with landmines and explosive 

remnants of war.

Socotra

Dahlak

Archipelago

Jaza'ir Farasan

Masira

Qeshm

Bubiyan

Indian Ocean

A r a b i a n

S e a

Mediterranean Sea

R e d S e a

B l a ck S e a

Persian Gulf

G u l f o f A d e n

Gulf of Oman

S u d a n

S o m a l i a

Ethiopia

Egypt

Y e m e n

U z b e k i s t a n

United Arab

Emirates

T u r k m e n i s t a n

K a z a k h s t a n Russia

T u r k e y

Syria

S a u d i A r a b i a

Qatar

O m a n

Oman

Lebanon

Kuwait

Jordan

Israel I r a q

I r a n

Georgia

Eritrea

Dijbouti

Cyprus

Bahrain

Azerbaijan

Azerb.

Armenia

Afghanistan

South Ossetia

Abkhazia

 Gaza Strip

West

Bank

Northern

Cyprus

NagornoKarabakh

Th e M i dd l e E a s t

41

Iraq. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Jordan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Lebanon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Yemen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Laurie Freeman / PM/WRA
42 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

T h e M iddl e Eas

t

Iraq

Iraq is one of the most severely mine- and 

unexploded ordnance- (UXO) affected 

nations in the world. Iraq’s landmine 

and UXO problems are a consequence of 

more than three decades of conflict: the 

1980–88 Iraq-Iran War, the 1991 Persian 

Gulf War, and Operation Iraqi Freedom 

(2003–present). The Iraq Landmine Impact 

Survey estimates that landmines cover an 

area of 727 square kilometers and UXOcontaminated areas affect an estimated 851 

square kilometers. In addition, hundreds of 

cached and abandoned ordnance sites exist 

throughout the country, sites that not only 

pose an immediate humanitarian risk but 

also serve as a ready source of explosives for 

terrorists and insurgents.

The United States Embassy successfully 

engaged with the Iraqi government to allow 

humanitarian demining to continue in 2009. 

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) invested more than $22 

million in humanitarian mine-action and 

conventional weapons destruction (CWD) 

projects in Iraq as follows:

	 •	RONCO Consulting Corporation:

$9.5 million to continue to develop 

the management and operational 

capability of Iraq Mine and UXO 

Clearance Organization (IMCO) 

as it has expanded its operations 

to the PM/WRA compound in 

southern Iraq and to provide 

technical advisory support to 

IMCO as it introduces mechanical 

equipment into its humanitarian 

demining operations.

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory

Group): $3.8 million to fund a 

combination of minefield and 

battle-area clearance operations and 

explosive ordnance disposal/small 

arms/light weapons destruction 

missions in northern Iraq.

	 •	IMCO: $4.3 million to continue

direct funding of IMCO’s 

CWD activities, as well as to 

establish a long-term base of 

operations for IMCO outside 

of the “International Zone.” 

Between the end of September 

2008 and January 2009 when 

the Iraqi government suspended 

operations, the team destroyed 

37,939 weapons, ranging from 

pistols to 120mm mortars. 

	 •	Information Management and

Mine Action Program: $1.2 

million to explosive remnants 

of war (ERW)/mine survey and 

data-management operations, as 

well as a victim-assistance project 

in northern Iraq.

	 •	Marshall Legacy Institute: $1.1

million to continue its indigenous 

mine-detection dog program in 

northern Iraq.

	 •	Danish Demining Group:

$850,000 to contribute to the 

national mine-action effort and 

to assist the Iraqi people in the 

disposal of ERW in southern Iraq, 

preventing casualties related to 

ERW in conflict-affected areas.

	 •	United Nations Development

Programme Mine Action Team: 

$685,000 to strengthen the Iraqi 

inter-ministerial coordination 

mechanism to develop a 

sustainable Directorate of Mine 

Action and Higher Council for 

Mine Action. 

	 •	Spirit of Soccer: $325,000 to

expand its mine-risk education 

program for at-risk children 

through soccer coaching activities. 

This program is aimed at 

reducing the number of child 

fatalities and injuries caused 

by landmines and other ERW. 

Spirit of Soccer also received 

$150,000 to conduct a regional 

MRE Soccer Tournament to raise 

awareness and promote advocacy 

to children from Iraq, Jordan, 

Lebanon, and the West Bank.

	 •	James Madison University’s Center

for International Stabilization 

and Recovery/Mine Action 

Information Center: $300,000 

to increase self-confidence, 

emotional/physical health, and life 

direction for landmine survivors, 

and empower them to help other 

victims in the same way in their 

countries of origin through a 

“Pathways to Resiliency” program.

In addition, the U.S. Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Research 

and Development Program, in partnership 

Iraqi children participating in soccer skills, drills, and MRE in northern Iraq. Spirit of Soccer
Point of Contact:

Kenneth R. Rutherford, Ph.D., Director

Center for International 

Stabilization and Recovery

James Madison University

MSC 4902

800 South Main Street

Harrisonburg, Virginia 22807

USA

telephone: 

+1 540 568 2756

facsimile: 

+1 540 568 8176

e-mail: 

rutherkr@jmu.edu

web site: 

http://cisr.jmu.edu or 

http://maic.jmu.edu

CISR

The Center for International 

Stabilization and Recovery: 

Combining Knowledge with Action 

The Center for International Stabilization and Recovery (CISR), and 

its subsidiary, the Mine Action Information Center (MAIC), are located at 

James Madison University. CISR focuses on six key services:

	 •	 Publications

	 •	 Training

	 •	 Field Programs

	 •	 Conferences

	 •	 Web Development

	 •	 Research

CISR publishes the longest continuous source of mine-action information 

in the world, The Journal of ERW and Mine Action, which is read in more 

than 160 countries. 

In addition, CISR developed and manages the MAIC web site, which is the 

premier global resource for mine-action lessons learned, current landmine 

news, and information. The MAIC web site also hosts the Internet’s 

largest free and unclassified database of ordnance in the world. The 

database provides information for the identification, recovery, transport, 

and disposal of more than 5,000 ordnance items in several categories. 

CISR hosts and conducts Senior Mine Action Management training 

around the world. It has conducted six five-week courses for the United 

Nations Development Programme and the U.S. Department of State, training 

125 participants from 36 countries. CISR is also conducting field programs 

on victim-assistance, especially focusing on peer-to-peer support programs. 

For more information, visit http://cisr.jmu.edu or http://maic.jmu.edu.

with MAG, continued evaluations of 

several excavator sifting attachments and a 

commercial front-loader attachment. The 

assistance, valued at $120,000, included 

support to repair and improve a vehiclemounted portable sifting system. To date, 

this equipment has sifted more than 20,000 

cubic meters of contaminated soil. More than 

750 mines and hundreds of pieces of UXO 

have been uncovered and destroyed. MAG 

continues to utilize the equipment in clearing 

villages and agricultural areas that have been 

mine-affected for more than 20 years.

Jordan

In FY2009 the Office of Weapons Removal 

and Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA) contributed $2.7 million toward 

Jordan’s mine-action initiatives:

	 •	National Committee for

Demining and Rehabilitation 

(NCDR): $320,000 grant to 

continue to conduct an intensive 

explosive remnants of war 

(ERW)/mine-risk education 

(MRE) program to cover 

all ERW- and mine-affected 

communities, focusing specifically 

on Jordan’s northern regions

	 •	NCDR: an additional $1.2-

million grant to develop and 

present twice the Explosive 

Remnants of War International 

Senior Managers Training Course 

covering instruction on the design 

and management of national 

owned responses to the presence 

of landmines and ERW

	 •	NATO Maintenance and Supply

Agency: $880,000 to enhance 

ammunition stockpile management 

by constructing a new ammunition 

processing facility

	 •	James Madison University’s

Center for International 

Stabilization and Recovery/Mine 

Action Information Center: 

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 43
T h e M iddl e Eas

t

$300,000 to continue MRE

projects, including performances 

of a theatrical play that provides 

intensive MRE to a total of 

100,000 at-risk people in 

northern Jordan 

Lebanon

Since the beginning of its civil war in 

1975 through the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah 

conflict, landmines and explosive remnants 

of war (ERW) have contaminated much 

of Lebanon. In 2003, a Landmine Impact 

Survey estimated that 22 of 24 districts 

in Lebanon were affected by unexploded 

ordnance (UXO) and landmines, spanning 

150 square kilometers. In 2008, a National 

Level II Technical Survey was scheduled 

to obtain the most up-to-date picture of 

the landmine and ERW threat in Lebanon 

and provide the necessary data to remove 

it. However, the survey was delayed due to 

poor weather conditions. 

In FY2009, the Office of Weapons 

Removal and Abatement in the U.S. 

Department of State’s Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs (PM/WRA) contributed 

$4,791,672 to Lebanon as follows:

	 •	MAG (Mines Advisory Group):

$3.85 million to improve the 

livelihoods and physical security 

of 10 ERW-affected communities 

in South Lebanon. This was 

achieved through the continued 

deployment of 10 fully equipped 

and accredited battle-area clearance 

44 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

(BAC) teams for five months, 

working on 22 BAC tasks.

	 •	DynCorp International:

$1,591,672 awarded to continue 

development of the Lebanon 

Mine Action Center (LMAC) 

to integrate all aspects of 

humanitarian mine action (HMA) 

effectively, complete a Level II 

Technical Survey of all suspected 

minefields, mark all minefields 

found by the survey, and establish 

a quality assurance/quality control 

cell and a conventional weapons 

destruction team within LMAC. 

Also in FY2009, the U.S. Agency for 

International Development’s Leahy War 

Victims Fund’s provided $800,000 to 

the World Rehabilitation Fund, Inc. as 

part of a three-year grant which began in 

2006. The project’s purpose is to develop 

practices, policies, attitudes, and capacity 

to address the socioeconomic problems and 

social burden resulting from landmines 

and acts of war. 

In addition, the United States Armed 

Forces, Central Command (USARCENT), 

hosted a Demining Seminar with 31 

Lebanese officers and noncommissioned 

officers to share information on 

improvised-explosive-device employment, 

tactics, techniques, and procedures, as 

well as lessons learned from Operation 

Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi 

Freedom. The seminar participants 

observed Lebanese Armed Forces’ (LAF) 

demining operations, the LAF Explosive 

Ordnance Disposal/Engineer Academy, 

the UXO and Fuze Museum, and two LAF 

humanitarian mine-action demining sites. 

USARCENT plans future HMA assistance 

through events and projects in support of 

the Lebanon Mine Action Center.

Yemen

Numerous conflicts between 1962 and 

1994 have left inhabitants of the border 

areas between the former North and South 

Yemen susceptible to dangers posed by 

landmines and explosive remnants of war 

(ERW). Yemen’s landmine/ERW problem 

worsened with the war in the northern 

governorate of Sa’ada (2004–early 2010). 

Landmines and ERW also hinder access to 

land for agriculture, which is the primary 

source of income for more than half of the 

population. A Landmine Impact Study, 

completed in 2000 and funded in part 

by the Office of Weapons Removal and 

Abatement in the U.S. Department of 

State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs 

(PM/WRA), reported that 592 villages 

in 19 of the 20 Yemen governorates are 

affected by mines and unexploded ordnance 

(UXO). The Yemen Executive Mine Action 

Centre (YEMAC) plans to achieve its vision 

of becoming self-sufficient and making 

Yemen free from the humanitarian impact 

of mines and UXO by 2014.

In FY2009, PM/WRA provided 

$600,000 to Yemen as follows:

	 •	YEMAC: $400,000 to purchase

numerous pieces of demining 

equipment and vehicles to replace 

old or worn-out equipment for 

Yemen’s mine-action program

	 •	United Nations Development

Programme: $200,000 to 

continue the operational 

support of the rehabilitation and 

integration of landmine victims in 

their local communities through 

the YEMAC

Furthermore, the Department of 

Defense’s Humanitarian Demining Research 

and Development Program, in cooperation 

with YEMAC, completed an operational 

field evaluation of the Improved Backhoe, a 

value of $157,000. The Improved Backhoe 

is a modified commercial backhoe with 

the capability of reducing vegetation and 

sifting through the soil of areas suspected 

of mine contamination. During a twoyear period the Improved Backhoe assisted 

YEMAC in clearing four high-priority 

minefields that had been deeply buried by 

shifting sand dunes.

Handler Ali Zayour works with Vinston, a mine-detection 

dog, in Akoura village, Mount Lebanon governorate.

Lebanon Mine Action Center
Reaching End States in the U.S. 

Humanitarian Mine Action Program

The U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program has provided a wide array of mineaction assistance—mine clearance; mine-risk education; mine survivors assistance; 

training of national program managers and deminers; training of medical personnel 

to render aid to injured deminers; personal protective equipment; robust 4x4 vehicles, 

specialized tractors and mine-resistant demining machines; mine-detecting dogs; metal 

detectors; ambulances for injured deminers and others harmed in a mine incident; aerial 

medevac capability; and much more—to a greater number of mine-affected countries 

around the world than those profiled in this edition of To Walk The Earth In Safety.

In fact, the United States has provided humanitarian mine-action assistance to 

more than 80 countries since the inter-agency program’s formal inception in 1993. 

When a country reaches the U.S. Government’s (USG) “end state,” it has sufficient 

indigenous mine-action capacity to handle any remaining landmine issues that arise or 

it has been rendered free from the humanitarian impact of landmines and unexploded 

ordnance (“mine-impact free”). Limited external funds and occasional technical 

assistance may still be required. The chart below shows the countries that have met 

the USG’s end state.

Albania (FY2007)

Armenia (FY2003)

Azerbaijan (FY2008)

Djibouti (FY2003)

Ecuador (FY2005)

Eritrea (FY2007)*

Estonia (FY2003)

Guatemala (FY2001)

Honduras (FY2004)

Jordan (FY2004)

Macedonia (FY2003)

Montenegro (FY2007)

Namibia (FY2003)

Oman (FY2002)

Rwanda (FY2003)

Swaziland (FY2000)

Thailand (FY2002)

Zambia (FY2003)

Conventional WeaponsDestruction End stateCountries

* Suspended

LEGENDOFACRONYMS (for the chart on pages 46-54)

CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

DOD Department of Defense

DOD ARCENT U.S. Army Forces, U.S. Central Command

DOD HAP/EP Humanitarian Assistance-Excess Property Program

DOD IRRF Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund

DODOHDACA Overseas Humanitarian Disaster Assistance and Civic Aid

DOS Department of State

DOS ERF Emergency Response Fund

DOS ESF Economic Support Fund

DOS FMF Foreign Military Financing

DOS FSA FREEDOM Support Act

DOS IO Bureau of International Organization Affairs

DOS NADRN onproliferation, Anti-terrorism, Demining, and Related Programs

DOS NADR-ATA Anti-terrorism Assistance

DOS NADR-HD Humanitarian Demining Assistance

DOS NADR-ITFI nternational Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance

DOS NADR-SALW Small Arms/Light Weapons Assistance

DOS PKO Peacekeeping Operations

DOS PRM Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration

OAS Organization of American States

PAHO Pan American Health Organization

USAID U.S. Agency for International Development

USAID “MITCH” Hurricane Mitch Reconstruction Program

USAID Leahy Leahy War Victims Fund

USAID SEED Support for East European Democracy

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 45
46 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY

Afghanistan DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 1,000 2,200 2,615 3,000 2,800 4,000 8,300 12,519 13,700 14,317 14,071 17,119 23,400 15,000 134,041

 DOS NADR-SALW2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 3,000 2,835 1,750 4,470 6,853 20,000 38,918 

 DOS ERF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,000 3,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,000

 DOS FMF 500 500 1,000 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,500

 DOS IO 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000

 DOS PRM 1,500 1,500 1,000 1,000 2,000 0 0 0 0 0 1,500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8,500

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 600 700 400 0 0 50 50 0 0 1,800

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,800 0 0 0 0 0 0 520 520 2,840

 DOD ARCENT 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,464 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,464

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 0 1,000 700 397 350 0 0 0 3,447

 USAID 0 3,400 1,800 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 13,925 28,875 0 0 0 0 0 0 48,000

 Country Total 3,000 5,400 3,800 2,000 3,000 2,200 2,615 3,000 2,800 12,864 28,925 42,804 17,400 17,549 16,221 21,639 30,773 35,520 251,510

Albania DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 18 0 0 18

 DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 684 326 1,417 1,750 1,000 1,000 480 1,933 2,300 0 10,890

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 625 450 350 0 0 300 1,000 5,140 95 2,000 9,960 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 0 11

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 340 0 0 0 0 0 0 340

 USAID SEED 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,049 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,049

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,049 1,309 776 1,767 2,090 1,000 1,300 1,480 7,091 2,406 2,000 22,268

Angola DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 1,000 2,400 0 3,096 2,844 2,800 3,500 5,300 6,172 5,673 4,500 5,880 6,800 6,500 56,465

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 70 500 0 115 447 750 1,682 500 1,000 5,064 

 DOS FMF 0 0 1,170 2,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,170

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 75 75 0 0 150

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 3,900 0 100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 0 850 850 5,714

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 2,500 768 732 0 0 1,000 900 0 800 651 1,000 0 0 0 0 8,351

 Country Total 0 0 5,070 4,500 1,868 3,132 0 3,096 3,844 3,770 4,000 6,100 6,938 7,120 5,339 7,637 8,150 8,350 78,914

Argentina DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 550 0 0 0 29 0 0 0 0 579

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 550 0 0 0 29 0 0 0 0 579

Armenia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 300 850 1,200 250 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,600

 DOS FSA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,800 0 1,200 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,000

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,110 0 1,441 0 67 0 0 0 200 0 0 2,818

 USAID Leahy 318 830 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,148

 Country Total 318 830 0 0 0 0 0 1,410 850 4,441 250 1,267 0 0 0 200 0 0 9,566

Azerbaijan DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 1,100 1,380 1,600 2,468 3,500 3,064 2,487 1,280 2,199 365 19,943

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 400 0 0 0 0 0 400 

 DOS FSA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,100

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 140 1,110 0 1,690 1,600 304 483 425 723 200 0 0 6,675

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 140 1,610 1,100 4,170 3,200 2,772 4,383 3,489 3,210 1,480 2,199 365 28,118

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History (Fiscal Years 1993–2010) (Dollars in Thousands)
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY 47

Bahrain DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 10

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 10

Benin DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 0 0 0 14

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 0 0 0 14

Bosnia and DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 300 2,305 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,605

 DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,175 5,500 5,161 5,150 2,960 3,000 3,373 3,300 3,000 4,650 4,103 0 46,372

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 535 0 0 390 0 0 500 1,425 

 DOS PKO 0 0 0 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 300 500 500 500 500 500 205 205 0 0 3,210

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 1,238 375 2,100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,713

 DOD HAP/EP 0 0 0 550 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 550

 USAID SEED 0 0 0 8,500 5,000 7,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 20,500

 Country Total 0 0 0 11,288 5,375 9,400 8,480 5,500 5,461 5,650 3,460 4,035 3,873 3,800 3,595 4,855 4,103 500 79,375

Bulgaria DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 964 980 400 500 0 400 0 300 0 400 3,944 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 964 980 400 500 0 400 0 300 0 400 3,944 

Burundi DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 100 0 300 0 400

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 281 200 138 0 619 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 74 0 74

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 381 200 512 0 1,093

Cambodia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 1,000 2,000 1,500 2,580 2,468 2,290 2,765 3,466 3,920 4,900 4,142 4,054 5,152 2,940 43,177

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 250 29 0 0 0 0 0 279 

 DOS FMF 0 750 1,300 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,050

 DOS PKO 0 0 0 250 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 250

 DOS PRM 1,643 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,643

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 50 0 0 100

 DOD OHDACA 0 300 1,685 420 1,584 0 0 90 207 319 158 86 180 94 7 0 2,500 2,500 10,130

 USAID Leahy 202 575 0 0 0 750 1,300 390 1,904 1,600 1,187 865 2,825 950 0 0 0 0 12,548

 Country Total 1,845 1,625 2,985 1,670 2,584 2,750 2,800 3,060 4,579 4,209 4,110 4,667 6,954 5,944 4,199 4,104 7,652 5,440 71,177

Central DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 37 0 0 0 37

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 37 0 0 0 37

Chad DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 400 732 622 300 350 500 950 1,000 1,780 200 0 65 0 6,899

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 1,500 1,000 17 0 0 161 244 169 596 0 0 0 0 3,687

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 1,900 1,732 639 300 350 661 1,194 1,169 2,376 200 0 65 0 10,586

Chile DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 735 973 0 0 454 450 2,612

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 735 973 0 0 454 450 2,612

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

(Dollars in Thousands)

HerzegovinaAfrican Republic
48 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY

Colombia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 300 791 1,486 1,523 2,000 6,100

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 395 0 0 395 

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 50 50 0 0 200 50 50 0 0 450

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 940 0 10 0 950

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 2,000 0 1,600 0 4,100

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 50 50 0 500 500 3,781 1,931 3,133 2,000 11,995

Congo, DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,185 2,000 119 937 1,000 5,241 

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 800 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 1,300

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 800 0 0 0 1,685 2,000 119 937 1,000 6,541

Congo, DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 445 675 200 0 1,320 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 445 675 200 0 1,320

Croatia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 600 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 600

 DOS NADR-ITF3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,975 2,658 4,570 1,779 1,500 2,300 2,300 2,009 2,111 2,000 0 24,202

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 0 0 1,000 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 600 2,975 2,658 4,570 1,779 1,500 2,300 2,300 2,009 3,111 2,000 0 25,802

Cyprus DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 10 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 0 10

Czech Republic DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 600 0 0 0 600 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 600 0 0 0 600

Djibouti DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 746 400 404 350 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,900

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 227 723 0 150 67 0 0 0 0 5 0 1,172

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 973 1,123 404 500 67 0 0 0 0 5 0 3,072

Ecuador DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 1,000 963 360 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,323

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 412 700 650 0 0 507 313 0 0 258 250 3,090

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 1,412 1,663 1,010 0 0 507 313 0 0 258 250 6,413

Egypt DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 708 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 718

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 708 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 718

El Salvador DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 150 300 300 450 450 400 400 195 195 0 0 2,840

 USAID Leahy 0 1,000 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,500

 Country Total 0 1,000 0 500 0 0 0 150 300 300 500 450 400 400 195 195 0 0 4,390

Eritrea DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 500 919 0 500 1,050 1,602 2,400 1,452 2,800 400 0 0 0 0 11,623

 DOS FMF 0 200 460 613 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,273

 DOS PKO 0 0 0 287 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 287

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 150 150 150 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 450

 DOD OHDACA 0 400 2,790 537 218 525 10 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,485

 Country Total 0 600 3,250 1,437 718 1,444 10 650 1,205 1,752 2,400 1,452 2,800 400 0 0 0 0 18,118

Estonia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 335 300 0 200 235 0 0 0 157 250 699 0 2,176

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 698 853 0 0 0 0 55 0 100 0 0 1,706

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 335 998 853 200 235 0 0 55 157 350 699 0 3,882

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History (Fiscal Years 1993–2010) (Dollars in Thousands)

Democratic Republic of theRepublic of the
TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY 49

Ethiopia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 500 1,220 0 250 0 1,275 300 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,545

 DOS FMF 0 300 300 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000

 DOS PKO 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 350 350 400 400 400 400 173 173 0 0 2,846

 DOD OHDACA 0 392 2,140 537 290 610 10 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,984

 USAID Leahy 730 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 25 0 0 300 0 1,555

 Country Total 730 692 2,440 1,437 790 1,830 10 450 355 2,125 700 400 400 425 173 173 300 0 13,430

Georgia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 39 0 27 1,000 1,100 1,050 1,500 3,000 2,123 1,750 700 1,837 0 14,126

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 402 0 0 5,565 777 600 7,344 

 DOS-1207 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,644 0 2,644

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,110 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,114

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 39 0 1,137 1,000 1,100 1,050 1,504 3,402 2,123 1,750 6,265 5,258 600 25,228

Guinea DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 103 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 103 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 103 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 103

Guinea-Bissau DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 99 489 0 225 0 0 400 677 200 1,000 0 3,090

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 268 609 0 0 877 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 162 1,212 70 0 0 1,444

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 99 489 0 225 0 0 562 2,157 879 1,000 0 5,411

Honduras DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 316 0 0 0 0 316 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 316 0 0 0 0 316

Iraq DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,950 0 2,840 0 12,099 12,900 19,417 18,000 68,206

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,050 4,180 0 2,000 9,230 

 DOS NADR/ATA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 992 0 0 992

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 350 0 0 0 50 50 0 0 450

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 120 120 240

 DOD IRRF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12,268 61,000 9,000 13,200 5,150 2,800 0 0 103,418

 DOD Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 81 0 0 81

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15,568 61,000 11,840 13,200 20,349 21,003 19,537 20,120 182,617

Jordan DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 400 500 1,900 1,511 947 850 893 950 0 0 0 514 1,820 0 10,285

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 880 0 880 

 DOS FMF 0 0 0 300 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 300

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 300 300 400 400 400 400 284 284 0 0 2,968

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 859 1,555 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,418

 Country Total 0 0 0 300 400 500 2,759 3,266 1,251 1,150 1,293 1,350 400 400 284 798 2,700 0 16,851

Kazakhstan DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 295 0 0 0 0 0 295 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 295 0 0 0 0 0 295

Kenya DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 180 458 500 500 1,638 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 56 0 56

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 400

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 400 0 0 0 0 180 458 556 500 2,094

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

(Dollars in Thousands)
50 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY

Kosovo DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500

 DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 899 1,945 1,681 0 0 0 110 205 150 150 0 5,140

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 3,800 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,300

 USAID 0 0 0 2,307 1,816 2,378 2,537 1,062 1,108 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 11,207

 USAID SEED 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,636 4,628 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,264

 Country Total 0 0 0 2,307 1,816 2,378 5,173 10,388 3,053 1,681 0 0 0 110 205 150 150 0 27,411

Kyrgyzstan DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 7

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 7

Laos DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 1,000 1,700 1,800 1,486 993 1,328 1,200 1,412 2,500 3,300 2,692 3,050 3,350 1,900 27,711

 DOS FMF 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500

 DOS PKO 0 0 0 250 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 250

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 59 1,800 3,737 864 396 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 6,861

 USAID Leahy 0 0 750 0 800 1,000 1,800 0 0 500 500 500 0 1,500 350 0 600 0 8,300

 Country Total 0 0 809 2,550 5,537 3,564 3,996 1,486 993 1,828 1,700 1,912 2,500 4,800 3,047 3,050 3,950 1,900 43,622

Lebanon DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 291 530 1,282 1,000 1,200 1,475 900 2,300 1,420 1,556 3,359 4,791 2,000 22,104

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,825 0 0 1,825 

 DOS IO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000 0 0 0 0 2,000

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 489 1,155 1,470 5,007 0 0 5 0 8,141

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 300 500 0 600 0 600 700 700 0 1,400 1,500 800 0 7,100

 USAID 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,200 0 0 0 0 1,200

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 591 1,030 1,297 1,600 1,200 2,564 2,755 4,470 9,627 2,956 6,684 5,596 2,000 42,370

Lesotho DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15

Liberia DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 160 0 0 0 0 0 0 360 

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 75 75 0 0 150

 USAID Leahy 0 1,115 0 225 0 500 1,000 0 0 0 416 173 500 0 0 500 0 0 4,429

 Country Total 0 1,115 0 225 0 500 1,000 0 0 0 616 333 500 0 75 575 0 0 4,939

Macedonia DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 505 97 0 0 50 50 50 50 0 1,802

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 46 0 0 0 46 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 505 97 0 0 50 96 50 50 0 1,848

Mauritania DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 534 461 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,395

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 450 1,123 1,123 661 595 0 0 0 458 0 0 0 4,410

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 984 1,584 1,523 661 595 0 0 0 458 0 0 0 5,805

Moldova DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 71 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 71

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 71 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 71

Montenegro DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 20 20 0 90

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000 477 784 0 3,261 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,050 497 804 0 3,351

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History (Fiscal Years 1993–2010) (Dollars in Thousands)

( FY 2007 to 

present)
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ETY 51

Mozambique DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 200 1,000 1,900 3,840 2,180 2,110 2,632 1,492 2,336 2,344 440 0 2,124 2,000 24,598

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 149 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 149 

 DOS FMF 0 400 0 200 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 600

 DOS PRM 0 500 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 300 300 400 50 400 400 25 25 0 0 2,100

 DOD OHDACA 0 5,065 1,100 100 2,484 1,600 1,100 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 49 0 11,498

 USAID Leahy 1,000 0 1,900 0 633 1,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,533

 Country Total 1,000 5,965 3,500 300 3,317 3,600 3,000 4,040 2,480 2,559 3,032 1,542 2,736 2,744 465 25 2,173 2,000 44,478

Namibia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 400 708 1,053 485 40 65 600 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,351

 DOS FMF 0 0 270 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 670

 DOD OHDACA 0 65 1,100 100 1,485 1,650 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,400

 Country Total 0 65 1,370 500 1,885 2,358 1,053 485 40 65 600 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8,421

Nepal USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 500

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 500

Nicaragua DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,740 1,400 250 350 850 4,590

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 300 32 9 0 0 0 0 341 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 300 32 1,749 1,400 250 350 850 5,131

Nigeria DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,449 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,449

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,449 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,449

Oman DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,017 273 495 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,785

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 179 870 0 0 1,500 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,553

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1,196 1,143 495 0 1,500 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,338

Pakistan DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 500

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 32 0 0 0 0 0 0 32 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 32 0 0 0 0 500 0 532

Palau DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 85 0 85

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 85 0 85

Paraguay DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 0 200 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 0 200

Peru DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 1,000 861 225 0 0 0 0 0 200 2,620 2,000 7,906

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 411 750 650 422 9,669 0 0 0 0 42 0 11,944

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000 1,411 1,611 875 422 9,669 0 0 0 200 2,662 2,000 19,850

Philippines DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 95 155 0 0 150 0 270 0 0 670 

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 750 0 0 0 800 0 0 1,550

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 95 155 750 0 150 0 1,070 0 0 2,220

Romania DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,062 307 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,369 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,062 307 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,369

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

(Dollars in Thousands)
52 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY

Rwanda DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 500 625 750 285 400 350 375 0 0 476 0 0 0 0 3,761

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 200 

 DOS FMF 0 0 300 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 700

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 4,580 100 1,610 1,500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7,790

 Country Total 0 0 4,880 500 2,110 2,125 750 285 400 350 375 0 0 476 0 0 200 0 12,451

Sao Tome/ DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 0 0 0 0 0 0 50

Senegal DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 112 0 0 421 655 725 0 1,913

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 92 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 92 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 252 0 0 0 252

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 500

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 92 500 112 0 0 673 655 725 0 2,757

Serbia DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 700 800 1,000 0 2,500

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7,333 0 350 7,683 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 700 8,133 1,000 350 10,183

Serbia & DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 833 1,021 1,000 1,000 0 0 0 0 3,854

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 396 0 988 0 408 0 0 0 0 0 1,792 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 396 0 1,821 1,021 1,408 1,000 0 0 0 0 5,646

Sierra Leone USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 61 32 1,000 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 1,593

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 61 32 1,000 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 1,593

Somalia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 343 1,150 1,400 1,400 1,200 450 0 0 0 0 0 760 0 6,703

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 754 763 2,000 3,517 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 343 1,150 1,400 1,400 1,200 450 0 0 0 0 754 1,523 2,000 10,220

Sri Lanka DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,400 1,775 2,700 1,108 400 1,479 600 0 10,462

 DOS NADR-SALW4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,000 0 6,000 

 DOS ESF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 122 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 122

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 50 50 0 25 0 0 25 25 0 0 175

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 183 0 0 0 40 24 0 0 0 0 0 98 0 345

 USAID Leahy 0 0 100 200 200 200 300 400 400 400 400 900 0 350 0 500 750 0 5,100

 Country Total 0 0 100 200 200 383 300 400 450 612 2,824 2,700 2,700 1,458 425 2,004 7,448 0 22,204

Sudan DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 896 2,858 2,500 2,420 2,725 3,643 4,000 3,400 22,442

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 560 600 600 1,000 600 500 3,860 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 896 2,858 3,060 3,020 3,325 4,643 4,600 3,900 26,302

Suriname DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 100 290 0 0 0 390 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 100 290 0 0 0 390

Swaziland DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 210 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 210

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 828 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 836

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 210 828 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,046

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History (Fiscal Years 1993–2010) (Dollars in Thousands)

Principe( FY 2007 to 

present)

Montenegro (FY1993–2006)
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ETY 53

Tajikistan DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 300 0 180 0 0 680 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 0 25 0 32

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 200 300 0 180 25 0 712

Tanzania USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 300 0 0 0 300 600 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 1,700

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 300 0 0 0 300 600 0 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 1,700

Thailand DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,050 1,220 1,270 650 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4,190

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 77 1,773 932 229 68 0 8 8 8 86 0 1,400 1,400 5,989

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 77 2,823 2,152 1,499 718 0 8 8 8 86 0 1,400 1,400 10,179

Togo DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 32 0 0 0 0 32 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 32 0 0 0 0 32

Tunisia DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 214 0 0 0 217

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 214 0 0 0 217

Uganda DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 40 0 0 0 0 40 

 USAID Leahy 500 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,000

 Country Total 500 0 500 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 40 0 0 0 0 1,040

Ukraine DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 642 1,500 1,500 1,800 1,000 0 1,500 7,942 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 642 1,500 1,500 1,800 1,000 0 1,500 7,942

Uruguay DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 200 

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 200 200

Uzbekistan DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 0 30

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 0 30

Vietnam DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 139 1,096 1,000 1,650 1,500 2,427 2,714 2,850 3,300 2,859 2,575 2,120 1,320 25,550

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 100 400 400 400 400 74 74 0 0 1,848

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 454 96 118 93 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 763

 USAID Leahy 2,250 980 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,300 1,000 500 3,264 0 1,500 605 0 23,399

 Country Total 2,250 980 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,639 2,596 2,954 3,246 3,218 4,220 4,114 3,750 6,964 2,935 4,149 2,725 1,320 51,560

Western DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 500 1,400 2,242 1,903 1,350 1,695 1,511 2,611 1,776 0 300 0 0 0 15,288

 DOS FMF 500 350 200 400 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,450

 DOD OHDACA 0 10 300 200 1,480 1,720 600 460 1,170 550 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,490

 USAID Leahy 0 0 0 0 0 0 500 0 0 100 478 1,000 1,200 0 226 250 0 0 3,754

 USAID “MITCH” 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000

 Country Total 500 360 500 600 1,980 3,120 3,342 4,363 2,520 2,345 1,989 3,611 2,976 0 526 250 0 0 28,982

Yemen DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 270 1,462 1,236 1,023 750 750 773 750 700 375 500 609 500 9,698

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1,422 0 0 525 0 0 500 2,447 

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 78 3,622 216 710 5 0 0 54 4 0 0 0 157 0 4,846

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 78 3,892 1,678 1,946 1,028 750 750 2,249 754 700 900 500 766 1,000 16,991

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

(Dollars in Thousands)

Hemisphere5
54 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAF

ETY

Zambia DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 772 816 450 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,050

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 424 0 0 0 0 0 0 13 0 437

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 772 1,240 450 0 0 0 0 0 13 0 2,487

Zimbabwe DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 680 743 1,140 523 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,086

 DOD OHDACA 0 0 0 0 0 1,500 1,000 765 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3,265

 Country Total 0 0 0 0 0 2,180 1,743 1,905 523 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,351

Global or DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 0 865 8,009 7,702 10,561 8,178 8,516 5,394 4,380 6,151 2,009 5,734 6,278 14,800 88,577

 DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 768 1,236 1,768 2,914 2,670 2,247 2,140 2,153 3,177 2,877 12,200 34,150

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 30 0 449 192 6,527 5,139 48,930 61,267 

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,500 2,400 1,250 1,500 1,625 1,200 2,569 2,569 3,040 0 18,653

 DOD OHDACA 0 800 10,400 4,200 20,918 22,771 18,611 26,271 16,169 21,059 12,895 13,653 14,874 1,576 2,820 1,949 5,462 5,700 200,128

 USAID Leahy 0 500 485 115 925 1,200 3,100 7,649 4,264 700 6,519 3,902 6,324 3,614 5,674 8,800 7,845 0 61,616

 TOTAL 0 1,300 10,885 4,315 21,843 24,836 29,720 42,390 34,730 34,105 32,094 27,149 29,450 15,130 15,417 28,756 30,641 81,630 464,391

By Account 

 DOS NADR-HD 0 0 0 0 7,000 18,210 34,805 39,999 39,907 39,822 49,000 48,646 59,024 55,916 56,188 65,846 93,124 73,575 681,063

 DOS NADR-ITF 0 0 0 0 0 0 6,175 10,141 12,684 14,000 10,000 9,941 9,920 9,900 8,647 12,891 12,500 12,200 128,999

 DOS NADR-SALW 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2,000 3,000 2,950 3,932 6,941 8,663 16,168 44,359 24,376 81,980 194,368

 DOS - Other 5,143 4,500 6,500 10,500 2,000 0 0 0 0 6,022 6,000 1,200 0 2,000 0 992 2,644 0 47,501

 CDC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 900 4,300 5,100 4,900 4,125 4,125 3,900 3,900 3,900 3,040 0 38,190

 DOD OHDACA 0 7,032 28,054 9,232 34,359 40,222 27,568 41,467 23,617 30,020 16,787 26,818 18,430 9,241 6,747 2,519 12,156 11,790 346,059

 DOD - Other 0 0 0 550 0 0 0 0 0 2,464 12,268 61,000 9,000 13,200 5,150 2,881 0 0 106,513

 USAID Leahy 5,000 5,000 5,235 5,040 5,126 7,182 10,000 10,000 10,000 10,000 11,900 11,930 14,900 11,600 10,000 13,850 13,000 0 159,763

 USAID - Other 0 3,400 1,800 10,807 6,816 9,378 4,173 8,739 1,108 0 13,925 28,875 0 1,200 0 0 0 0 90,220

Grand Total (All Accounts) 10,143 19,932 41,589 36,129 55,301 74,992 82,721 111,246 93,616 110,429 127,730 196,467 122,340 115,620 106,800 147,238 160,840 179,545 1,792,676

 COUNTRY SOURCE FY1993 FY1994 FY1995 FY1996 FY1997 FY1998 FY1999 FY2000 FY2001 FY2002 FY2003 FY2004 FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2008 FY2009 FY2010 1 Total

U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program Funding History (Fiscal Years 1993–2010) (Dollars in Thousands)

MultilateralFY1993–2010

1 Totals for FY2010 are estimates2 FY 2009 amount includes $1,100,000 spent on demining.3 FY 2008 amount includes $110,000 SEED funds apportioned as NADR.4 FY 2009 amount was spent on demining.5 Includes OAS and PAHO regional funding. Prior to 2007, most funding for 

Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua was also included in this 

line; since then it has been attributed to individual countries as appropriate.
This is a graphic used for a children’s mine-risk education T-shirt in JORDAN. It says: “Being curious can get you into trouble.” Jordan National Committee for Demining and Rehabilitation
56 TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY

© Heather Fassio

Personal protection vest worn by a deminer in Afghanistan. October 2008.
APOPO Association of Volunteers in International Service, USA, Inc Austcare C King Associates, Ltd. Center for International Rehabilitation 

 Center for International Stabilization and Recovery Center for Teaching International Relations Centro Integral de Rehabilitación de Colombia 

 Children of Armenia Fund Children’s Surgical Centre Clear Path International Coalition Against Landmines Cranfield University 

DanChurchAid Danish Demining Group Demining Agency for Afghanistan Freedom Fields USA Global Care Unlimited Golden West 

Humanitarian Foundation Grapes for Humanity The HALO Trust Handicap International-France Health Volunteers Overseas Help 

Handicapped International The Humpty Dumpty Institute Information Management and Mine Action Programs Inc. International Eurasia Press 

Fund Iraqi Mine & UXO Clearance Organization The Julia Burke Foundation Kids First Vietnam Landmine Relief Fund Landmines Blow! 

 Legacies of War Lipscomb University MAG (Mines Advisory Group) Marshall Legacy Institute Medical Care Development International 

Messiah College Landmine Action Project Mine Clearance Planning Agency-Afghanistan Mine Detection Center-Afghanistan One Sri Lanka 

Foundation Organization for Mine Clearance and Afghanistan Rehabilitation PeaceTrees Vietnam People to People International The 

Polus Center for Social & Economic Development Positive Play Prestige Health Care Technologies Prosthetics 

Outreach Foundation Roots of Peace Save the Children Schonstedt Instrument Company South Florida 

Landmine Action Group Spirit of Soccer Students Partnership Worldwide Survey Action Center Survivor 

Corps Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) United for Colombia United Nations Foundation Veterans for 

America Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund World Education World Rehabilitation Fund

Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement

Bureau of Political-Military Affairs

U.S. Department of State

SA-3, Suite 6100

2121 Virginia Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20522

United States of America

telephone: +1 202 663 0100

facsimile: +1 202 663 0090

www.state.gov/t/pm/wra

Points of Contact

James F. Lawrence

Acting Director

LawrenceJF@state.gov

Steve R. Costner

Deputy Director, Policy

CostnerSR@state.gov

LtCol Nick Spignesi, USMC

Deputy Director, Programs

SpignesiNA@state.gov

Susan Douglas

Resource Management

DouglasSD@state.gov

Stacy Bernard Davis

Public Affairs and Public Engagement 

DavisSB@state.gov

TO WALK THE EARTH IN SAFETY 57

The Public-Private Partnership Program of the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department 

of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA) was launched in October 1997 to enlist civil society support for 

clearing persistent landmines and explosive remnants of war, teaching mine-risk education, and rendering assistance 

to survivors of landmine- and unexploded-ordnance accidents around the world. 
The United States’ Commitment to Conventional Weapons Destruction

9 t h E d i t i o n J u l y 2 0 1 0 U n i t e d S t a t es De p a r t m e n t o f S t a t e B u r e a u o f P o l i t i c a l - M i l i t a r y A f f a i r s

To Walk The Earth In Safety