Afghanistan has inked two pacts with an international demining organization to clear mines and explosive remnants of war across the country, an official statement said on Thursday.
The memorandums of understanding with a combined value of $4.1 million were signed between the Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA) and the Danish Refugee Council's Mine Action Program, said a statement from the Afghan authority.
The agreements were signed during a meeting between Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, the Afghan authority director general, and J. Opreti, director general of the Danish program.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed expanding cooperation, implementing mine action projects, clearing areas contaminated by mines and explosive remnants of war, raising awareness of mine risks, and addressing the needs of victims.
Turabi expressed appreciation for the Danish group's cooperation and stressed accelerating the clearance of contaminated areas, effective coordination with the Afghan disaster authority and its Mine Action Coordination Directorate, and prioritizing areas that pose the greatest threat to people's lives and safety.
Opreti provided information on the organization's new projects and stressed continued cooperation and coordination to reduce risks from mines and explosive remnants of war.
Currently, Afghanistan ranks third globally for casualties caused by landmines and unexploded ordnance, a legacy of successive wars that left millions of explosive remnants scattered across villages, mountains, and fields, according to the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.
Landmines and other explosives left behind after decades of war killed at least 92 people and injured 379 others in Afghanistan last year.
More than two-thirds of the victims were children, the UN mission added.
According to the UN Mine Action Service, since 1989, more than 45,000 Afghan civilians have been killed or injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war.
