Long after wars and other hostilities end, landmines and unexploded ordnance – including bombs, mortars, grenades and missiles – inflict pain and suffering on millions of people, often women and children in the world’s poorest areas.

In addition to preventing such harm, Mine Action restores access to hospitals, roads, pastureland and other resources that allow people in post-conflict settings to resume their daily lives and generate incomes.

Mine Action comprises:

• Detecting and removing landmines and unexploded ordnance
• Raising awareness of the dangers of explosive remnants of war and educating people on how to avoid risks in contaminated areas
• Providing victims medical assistance and rehabilitation services such as job skills training and employment opportunities
• Destroying stockpiles of mines and unexploded ordnance
• Encouraging countries to participate in agreements banning the use of landmines

Mine Action operations

The UNOPS Mine Action Team works closely with the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

UNOPS helps clients plan, implement, manage and monitor their Mine Action projects and programmes. UNOPS services may be limited to employment contract administration or extend to planning and managing an entire operation. Similarly, UNOPS can support specific aspects of Mine Action work, such as mine-risk education.

UNOPS Mine Action experts are qualified to monitor all types of Mine Action work, ensuring compliance with International Mine Action Standards on establishing, managing, monitoring and evaluating Mine Action programmes, stockpile destruction and mine risk education.

Project management

Project management is a core UNOPS service line. UNOPS responds quickly and appropriately to diverse client and community needs, managing Mine Action programmes in some of the world’s most dangerous places. UNOPS Mine Action personnel can also be deployed for short-term missions to assess specific country needs.

Human resources

UNOPS can draw on a substantial roster of local and international experts to help deliver client projects. UNOPS can handle the vetting, recruitment, contract administration and training of project personnel.

Procurement

UNOPS can assist clients to establish coordination centres, and can contract and deploy specialized firms and non-governmental organizations to the field within days to provide demining services. These include landmine impact and emergency surveys, mine risk education, integrated clearance utilizing manual demining and mine detection dogs, explosive ordnance disposal, victim assistance programmes, external evaluations, and national mine awareness and advocacy campaigns.

Emergency and peacekeeping settings

As an operational arm of the United Nations Department for Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), UNMAS has lead responsibility for clearing mines and unexploded ordnance in emergency peacekeeping settings mandated by the Security Council. In such situations UNMAS often employs UNOPS to deliver fast procurement, recruitment and operational management to facilitate delivery of humanitarian aid and launch emergency mine clearance.

Post-conflict work

After DPKO assistance has concluded, UNDP has lead responsibility for establishing and developing the capacity of national Mine Action institutions and developing related laws. UNDP frequently asks UNOPS to manage Mine Action operations.

Clients sometimes request the UNOPS Mine Action Team to support projects without a direct Mine Action focus – for instance ensuring that areas are free of explosives, or conducting mine clearance in preparation for infrastructure or agricultural development work.