MRE team of UXO Lao educate children through puppetry in Khammuan province

Unexploded ordnance (UXO) Risk Education in schools and communities across Laos reached a total of 268,455 persons in 2019, Minister for Labour and Social Welfare and National Regulatory Authority for UXO and Mine Action (NRA) Chairman Dr Khampheng Saysompheng told a meeting on Saturday.

UXO sector education efforts open children's eyes to hidden risk

The threat faced daily by the population of Laos appears in the form of UXO contamination as a result of the Indochina War from 1964 to 1973, he reminded those gathered to mark the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action

Some 270 million Cluster Munition Bomblets were dropped on Laos.

Of these, it is has been estimated that up to 30 percent would have failed to detonate. 

A majority of the remainder still lie buried beneath the soil's surface, littered across much of the country.   

The United Nations General Assembly declared the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action on the 8th of December 2008 to foster the establishment and development of national mine-action capacities in countries where Mines and Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) constitute a serious threat to the local population.

Dr Khampheng said UXO/Mine Risk Education (MRE) is playing a critical role in preventing UXO accidents and protecting the people of the Lao PDR. MRE is vital in ensuring that villagers and school children alike are not only made aware of the risks posed by UXO and now to avoid. It is crucial to educate children on the precise locations of Confirmed Hazardous Areas within the communities.  

He said educational efforts of MRE by operators across the country have been more than just informative, interactive, and enjoyable for young audiences. 

These efforts have also contributed to a steadying decline in casualty numbers from over 300 persons in 2008 to 25 persons in 2019. 

He said while the sharp decrease in the number of casualties is commendable, it was certainly not the end of the road. 

 "We owe our gratitude to the tireless efforts for all those working within the Lao PDR UXO Sector.

"We should also take this opportunity to remember those individuals who have been killed and physically maimed by the unforgiving menace of UXO. They will always be remembered," Dr Khampheng said.

"The clearance efforts will continue in Laos, in the hope that death and injury do not knock on the door of the innocent, with a renewed level of energy to try to make a difference to ordinary people's lives."

The national UXO capacities have been working relentlessly to tackle this issue since 1996, through the establishment of the Lao National UXO Programme (UXO Lao).

The Lao government established the NRA with UNDP and other development partners.

It has the mandate to survey and clear the land of UXO and conduct UXO Risk Education and awareness-raising in the 9 of the most heavily UXO-contaminated Provinces in which they operate.

The establishment of a coordination body for the UXO sector, the National Regulatory Authority for UXO and Mine Action (NRA) followed in 2006. 

The national authorities, with continued support from UNDP, are strengthening awareness-raising efforts towards achieving the national Sustainable Development Goal 18- Lives Safe from UXO and beyond.

Mr Khampheng said significant progress had been achieved in addressing UXO in 2019. 

At the 9th Meeting of State Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM), Laos also used the opportunity to declare an official request for a 5-year extension of its Article 4 deadline until the 1st of August 2025.

In addition, the NRA commenced drafting a concept paper and work plan for a UXO Decree which would implement the CCM obligations within the timeframe of the 5-year extension.

Some 216 UXO survivors across the country have received support, including medical care, physical rehabilitation, psychosocial rehabilitation, and the provision of prosthetic and orthotic support. 

Some 966 Confirmed Hazardous Areas, equivalent to 19,862 hectares (ha), were identified and registered in the Information Management System for Mine Action.

Some 5,658 ha were cleared by all operators, including commercial. 

Dr Khampheng said the UXO sector had conducted UXO Risk Education in many schools and communities across the country. 

 A total of 268,455 participants benefited from these activities in 2019, including 134,744 men and 133,711 women. 

UXO Lao, as the National UXO Programme Organisation of Laos, conducted 358 MRE village visits, reaching over 254,000 beneficiaries, comprising of roughly equal numbers male and female. 

 Items distributed included 1,500 t-shirts for adults, 1,700 t-shirts for children, 18,000 writing notebooks, 500 MRE posters, as well as puppets and banners.  

These teams are both professional and creative, with their awareness raising activities coming in the form of songs, puppetry, imagery, games and a Q&A session. 

These efforts offer easier access to information for young children.

They also provide a learning forum for those across the country who speak many different ethnic languages or are as yet unable to read or write.  

In 2019, the UXO sector broadcasted UXO messages across five provincial radio stations, updates, and distributed MRE material and posters, as well as providing training on how to conduct MRE activities. 

Some 22,800 people were reached by the UXO broadcasted messages in the five UXO-contaminated provinces of Champassak, Khammuan, Saravan, Xekong, and Vientiane during the year. 

The UXO sector also worked with Lao Youth Union village volunteers to train them in conducting MRE in 2019 and is continuing these activities in 2020. E

NdUN Women collaborated with the NRA and Lao Women's Union in 2019 to produce a training manual entitled "Manual for Trainers on Gender Mainstreaming in the UXO Sector Lao PDR" which was widely printed and distributed. 

By Times Reporters
(Latest Update April 05, 2020) [06:33 PM]