SUMMARY
- Search and clearance of a total of 121,762 square metres of land through a combination of hand, and visual techniques
- Removal and destruction of a total of 2,866 hazardous items by the Mine Action Teams
- Destruction of 1,100 weapons by the CWMD* teams
- 128 Dangerous Areas identified
- 149 Mine Risk Education sessions conducted, targeting 3,560 beneficiaries
KEY ACTIVITIES:
A significant success in September was the receipt of an agreement from the Ministry of the Interior to allow MAG to destroy surplus stocks belonging to the National Congolese Police.
To date, MAG has been focusing on military stocks (Army, Navy and Air Force); this agreement opens a second pillar within the CWMD programme.
The destruction of police stocks will significantly reinforce the impact of the CWMD program on the safety of the civilian population and on peace-building at a national and regional level.
Another key activity in September was MAG's participation in the national working session organised by the UNMACC and UNICEF for the development of Mine Risk Education materials. It has improved the resources available nationally for sensitisation activities, and was especially useful for local NGOs, who benefited from the specialised knowledge shared by international organisations delivering humanitarian mine action.
Also in September, the MAG International Development and Evaluation Team (IDET) were in country to carry out an evaluation of the operations and supporting functions of MAG DRC.
One of the IDET members visited the Mine Action Teams in Katanga while the other one was in Equateur. Time was also spent in Kinshasa, working with the Senior Management Team on the development of new projects and partnerships as well as undertaking a general review of the programme. This annual mission is key to improving the MAG programme and the impact it has on its beneficiaries.
To download the full report in pdf format, go to the publications section at www.maginternational.org/drc.
MAG would like to express its gratitude to the following current donors to the DRC programme: Department for International Development (UK) ; Guernsey Overseas Aid Commission; Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency; Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, United States Department of State.
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
European Union Aid Commissioner Louis Michel addresses the media in Kigali October 31, 2008. Michel is in Rwanda for talks with President Paul Kagame after visiting Democratic Republic of Congo's President ...
