Convention on Cluster Munitions affiliation benefiting Lao UXO clearance

Laos will continue to benefit from being a party to the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) to reduce the impacts of unexploded ordnance (UXO) on the most at-risk people in the country, according to a leading official.
The government last week confirmed that as a CCM member country, Laos has already benefited from funding to support improvement in the wellbeing and livelihoods of people affected by unexploded cluster munitions.

Minister of Labour and Social Welfare and Chairman of the National Regulatory Authority for the UXO/Mine Action Sector in Laos (NRA) Board, Dr Khampheng Saysompheng, on Friday revealed the information during a press conference to mark the 10th Anniversary of the Entry into Force of the Convention on Cluster Munitions (August 1).
He said Laos had taken its role as a State Party very seriously and successfully hosted the first-ever meeting of State Parties in Vientiane, in November 2010. Both the Vientiane Declaration and the Vientiane Action Plan were adopted at this meeting.
The latter was instrumental in setting out concrete and measurable steps, actions and targets aimed to be completed within specific timeframes over the next five-year period until the Dubrovnik Action Plan was adopted, he said.
“Laos has made significant headway on these obligations over the past decade. Survey methodologies have been revised and improved, moving away from the older request-based approach to the newer evidence-based approach,” Dr Khampheng explained.
This has resulted in an increased number of cluster munitions being found per hectare of land and has dramatically improved operational efficiency.
He noted the CCM holds particular importance for Laos, being the second signatory to the CCM in December 2008, with Prime Minister Sisoulith, who was the Foreign Minister at the time, signing on behalf of the state.
The NRA is currently working on drafting a sector-wide prioritisation plan, which will clearly define clearance priorities. This focus on mine-risk education has contributed to the steady decline in the number of victims over the past decade, with 119 victims in 2010, 25 in 2019, and 18 so far in 2020.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, Ms Ricarda Rieger noted that “As an important partner to the CCM, Laos at this time of the drafting of the new National Socio-Economic Development Plan, has to consider the prevalence of UXOs and devise sustainable strategies, to ensure that lives are safe from UXO and everyone enjoys equal opportunities.”.
She said Laos held the first CCM Presidency, holding the seat of the President’s Executive Coordinator.
From 2017 to 2019, Laos then held a joint seat with Sweden on the CCM coordination committee for the thematic area of clearance and risk education. With 108 State Parties to the CCM, Laos is the only State Party from Southeast Asia and plays an important role in representing and voicing the challenges faced within the region.

By Phetphoxay Sengpaseuth
(Latest Update August 3, 2020)