Mine action for Korea-Vietnam peace village project launched

ABO/NDO- The mine action for the Republic of Korea (RoK) - Vietnam peace village project, which covers the central provinces of Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Ngai and Binh Dinh, was launched in Binh Dinh on May 23.

Jointly implemented by the Vietnam National Mine Action Centre (VNMAC), the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the UN Development Programme, the project will run until December 2026 at a total cost of over 14 million USD from non-refundable aid provided by the RoK Government.

It aims to cope with consequences of bombs and mines left by the war, protect civilians, promote socioeconomic development of the localities and serve the building of rural communities of harmony, safety, prosperity and climate change resilience.

The project will focus on conducting technical surveys on 15,000 hectares of land and clear about 6,000 hectares of UXO and explosive-contaminated areas in the three provinces.

At the launching ceremony (Photo: VNA).

It will support UXO victims and persons with disabilities in the covered localities, while enhancing the capacity of officials at all levels in the field, and helping complete mechanisms, policies and social solutions to assist UXO victims and the disabled.

Addressing the launching ceremony, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Binh Dinh Nguyen Tu Cong Hoang said that 250,000 hectares, or 40% of the province’s natural area are polluted by post-war bombs, mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO).

Thanks to a cooperation project between Vietnam and the RoK that was implemented in 2018-2021, more than 4,200 hectares of UXO-contaminated land of Binh Dinh were cleared, and 69,000 UXOs of all kinds were collected and deactivated. Currently, more than 26,800 people affected by UXO in the province are in need of support, Hoang said.

Sen. Lieut. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien, Deputy Minister of National Defence, said that once completed, the project will help people in areas contaminated with bombs, mines and explosives in the three provinces to be safe during their production and daily life.

Along with the completion of three component projects implemented by the People's Committees of the three provinces, many communities and bomb and mine victims living in Hoa Binh (peace) villages will receive support in human and livelihood development, thus making an important contribution to the socio-economic development of the localities.

He asked VNMAC to continue coordinating closely with KOICA and UNDP with the highest sense of responsibility, ensuring the effective implementation of all project activities as scheduled with the utmost safety.

Earlier, VNMAC, KOICA and UNDP jointly implemented the Korea-Vietnam Mine Action Project (KVMAP) which successfully cleared nearly 17,000 hectares of UXO-polluted land in Quang Binh and Binh Dinh provinces, enhance the capacity of more than 450,000 locals in preventing UXO accidents, and support 1,000 UXO victims.

(Source: NDO)