Ukraine and Angola will strengthen cooperation in mine action. This was agreed by Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Ihor Bezkaravainyi and Deputy Director General for Technical Affairs of the National Mine Action Agency of the Republic of Angola, Isabel Masela. The working meeting took place during the 29th International Meeting of National Mine Action Directors and United Nations Advisers, hosted in Geneva.
“It is very important for us to maintain dialogue with countries that, like us, have suffered from the consequences of war. Angola has been clearing its territory of mines left after the civil war for decades. They have valuable experience to share with us and are interested in learning more about the mine action system Ukraine has developed in recent years. That is why we invited Angolan representatives to visit Ukraine and see firsthand the solutions that help make land safer,” said Ihor Bezkaravainyi.
Bilateral cooperation in humanitarian demining is one of the priority areas of cooperation between the two countries. For both Ukraine and Angola, clearing territories of mines and other explosive remnants of war is the first stage of reconstruction and a prerequisite for the safe return of the population, the restoration of economic activity, and the sustainable development of affected communities.
Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Angola was considered one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. As a result of the civil war that lasted nearly 30 years (1975–2002), the country’s territory was contaminated with anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. International organizations such as MAG and the HALO Trust have, over the past 30 years, identified and cleared more than 200,000 explosive remnants of war.
