Long after combat ends,
landmines and unexploded ordnance continue to maim and kill, preventing people
from safely returning to their homes, tilling their fields, collecting water, as
well as preventing governments from reconstructing powerlines and industrial
infrastructure. Mine action is an integrated approach to addressing the mine
problem and consists of a range of activities that create a safer environment
for people to resume a normal and productive life.
In 15 of the world's most heavily mined countries, UNOPS acts on behalf of
its major clients (the United Nations Mine Action Service – UNMAS, the
United Nations Development Programme – UNDP, and the United Nations Office
of the Iraq Programme – UNOIP), providing the project management services
necessary to deal with immediate urgent needs and to help develop national
capacity to resolve the problem over the long term, combining the flexibility
and innovation of a private sector firm with the principles and objectives of
the United Nations.
UNOPS Project Management Services for Mine Action
UNOPS has been designated as a principal provider for mine action project
services within the United Nations system. The UNOPS Mine Action Unit,
established in early 1998, is directly responsible for all UNOPS involvement in
mine action, including the execution of nearly all of the UN mine action support
projects. The MAU includes specialized project management, technical and legal
expertise, as well as appropriate support for fielding personnel and procurement
of supplies. This unique combination of skills enables UNOPS to efficiently
provide mine action project management services tailored to our clients needs.
UNOPS acts in many ways:
Behind the scenes: Before mine action begins, UNOPS brings
together the elements required to set up a mine action programme, including
international expertise, specialized equipment, complex agreements with donor
governments for the provision of "in-kind" personnel, as well as necessary
management and administrative support. One of the key successes of UNOPS in
1999 was the timely establishment of the UNMIK Mine Action Coordination Center
in Pristina, Kosovo, which ensured that the multitude of resources which
converged on Kosovo in the summer of 1999 could be applied in a coordinated and
effective manner.
In the country: Depending on the scope of the project, UNOPS
specialized project personnel advise officials of the national mine action
authority or directly coordinate the work of all actors, launch nationwide mine
surveys and work with the responsible authorities to set priorities to meet
local needs.
In the minefields: UNOPS contracts the world's leading demining
companies and NGOs through competitive bidding, and ensures that they follow the
international standards for humanitarian mine clearance. As areas are cleared,
certification is provided to let civilians know it's safe to move back home.
In the community: UNOPS supports networks of prosthetic and
rehabilitation centres, mine-awareness campaigns, and training programmes to
lessen the risk of living in mine affected areas and to teach new skills to
those who have lost limbs and livelihoods.
When requested to do so, UNOPS will:
orchestrate the many resources required to start up and carry out effective
mine action;
identify and recruit international and national expertise in mine
action;
rapidly procure and deploy demining and other equipment to the field;
conduct tenders and draft contracts and agreements to suit any country;
provide technical backstopping on all aspects of mine action;
ensure exchange of experience and best practices among programmes;
prepare grant agreements for support to victim assistance; and
train nationals and develop local institutions to ensure
sustainability.
Through the provision of mine action services, UNOPS
has been able to assist UNMAS, UNDP, OIP and national governments in the:
establishment of national mine action centres and development of national
mine action plans and policies covering standards and quality assurance for
survey, clearance, accreditation, and victim assistance;
establishment of mine action information systems for priority setting,
tasking and reporting;
launching of mine survey and clearance operations through the use of manual,
mine detection dogs and mechanical systems in mine-affected areas; and
strengthening of medical treatment, rehabilitation and vocational services
for mine victims.
UNOPS Clients / Programmes
UNOPS has been entrusted to manage mine action projects for various UN
agencies since the early 1990s. The Mine Action Unit delivers a range of
management and procurement services valued at about $25 million in 1999 and
expected to reach $35 million in the year 2000.
UNOPS’ major clients include UNMAS, UNDP and the UNOIP. UNOPS’
involvement varies, depending on the country and the project. Sometimes funders
of mine action call on UNOPS to assume full operational responsibility for an
entire programme (e.g., Kosovo and N. Iraq). At other times, UNOPS is given
responsibility for all UN support to a national programme; whereas in some cases
UNOPS may be hired to manage only a single component, such as hiring
international technical expertise in mine action. The programmes, listed below,
are described in more detail in the country update sections of this Report.
UNMAS is the focal point for mine action within the UN system, as designated
by the UN Secretary-General, and is responsible for coordinating all
mine-related work funded by eleven UN departments and agencies, and for
launching emergency mine action activities such as in Kosovo, or when natural
disasters severely impact on a country’s mine problem as in the floods in
Central America and Mozambique. Over the past few years, UNOPS has worked with
UNMAS by providing the programme management services necessary to implement
programmes in Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, Mozambique, Nicaragua,
the Sudan and Yemen and on global projects such as the Landmine Survivors
Directory and the Land Mine Safety Handbook.
UNDP is generally responsible for mine action projects in stable development
contexts, which generally focus on strengthening national institutional capacity
to enable mine-affected countries to manage mine action programmes on their own
over the long-term. UNOPS provides project management services necessary to
support implementation of UNDP programmes in Angola, Azerbaijan, Bosnia &
Herzegovina, Cambodia, Chad, Croatia, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, Somalia, Sri
Lanka, and Yemen and the UNA-USA “Adopt-a Minefield” programme.
The UN Office of the Iraq Programme manages the "Oil for Food Programme"
established under Security Council Resolution 986. Since 1997, UNOPS has
managed the integrated mine action programme in Northern Iraq on behalf of the
UNOIP. Under this programme over 600 deminers have been trained and deployed,
with the majority of teams now operating under local supervision, a mine action
information database has been established with a Level One Survey conducted in
85% of the territory, over 2.5 square kilometers of mine fields cleared and an
equal area marked for clearance, a network of emergency medical and prosthetics
centers established and supported, and special efforts have been taken to
develop a full range of local capabilities, including an indigenous mine
detection dog programme, development and production of local mini-flail systems,
and development of local mine action NGOs.
Other UNOPS Activities
UNOPS is actively involved in the efforts of the United Nations and the mine
action community to develop the information, tools, and infrastructure to
increase the effectiveness of mine action, and is an active member of the
Interagency Coordination Group on Mine Action chaired by UNMAS. In addition to
the provision of project management services for the specific country programmes
referred above, UNOPS executes other projects for UNMAS, including the Landmine
Safety Handbook and Training Programme, and the Landmine Survivors’
Directory, and quality assurance of the Level One Survey process. UNOPS
participates in the development of international standards for mine action
– particularly those for demining – as well as in the discussion of
the specification and use of appropriate indicators for priority setting to
increase the impact and efficiency of mine action activities. UNOPS seeks to
ensure that international and national staff involved in the daily management
and support to programmes take part in all such discussions. UNOPS actively
encourages exchange of information among programmes and learning from best
practices, and has developed startup kits including model documents and
guidelines that enable the new programmes with which it is involved to benefit
from the experience accumulating in the field.
UNOPS Mine Action Unit
405 Lexington Avenue, 4th floor, New York, NY 10174, USA