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| Mine Action Coordination Centre of Afghanistan | |
|---|---|
| Name | Mine Action Coordination Centre of Afghanistan |
| Formation | 1988 |
| Type | Non-profit coordination body |
| Headquarters | Kabul, Afghanistan |
| Region served | Afghanistan |
| Leader title | Director |
Mine Action Coordination Centre of Afghanistan is the national coordination body established to oversee clearance, risk education, victim assistance, and data management related to antipersonnel mines, unexploded ordnance, and improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan. It interfaces with international entities, provincial authorities, and implementing partners to prioritize clearance and manage humanitarian demining programs. The centre has operated amid complex conflict dynamics involving multiple armed actors and shifting international engagement.
The centre was created in the late 1980s following widespread contamination from the Soviet–Afghan War, and expanded during the post-2001 reconstruction era involving actors such as the United Nations Mine Action Service, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and bilateral donors including the United States Agency for International Development, the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the Norwegian People's Aid. During the 1990s and 2000s it coordinated with operators like HALO Trust, MAG (Mines Advisory Group), and Afghan demining companies trained by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization partners. Major events shaping its evolution include clearance responses after the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan (2001) and contamination patterns following the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan and subsequent insurgent warfare. The centre adapted to policy shifts such as the Ottawa Treaty norms on antipersonnel mines despite Afghanistan’s distinct articulation in international fora like the United Nations General Assembly.
The centre’s formal mandate encompasses nationwide survey, clearance prioritization, information management, risk education, victim assistance coordination, and technical standard setting in line with international instruments like the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons and humanitarian standards promoted by the International Mine Action Standards. It issues operational priorities to implementing partners including UNICEF for risk education, World Health Organization for survivor care linkages, and provincial administrations in Kabul, Herat, Kandahar, and other provinces. The centre also provides accreditation and quality assurance for demining operators such as Danish Demining Group and coordinates emergency explosive ordnance disposal associated with incidents involving the International Security Assistance Force and subsequent multinational contingents.
The centre is led by a Director supported by technical departments responsible for operations, survey and clearance, information management, quality assurance, and victim assistance liaison. Functional units coordinate with international entities including UNMAS regional offices, donor coordination forums like the Good Humanitarian Donorship initiative, and implementing NGOs such as Action on Armed Violence and Danish Refugee Council. Provincial mine action coordination offices interface with local institutions in Balkh Province, Nangarhar Province, and Helmand Province to implement field programs and data collection, reporting through the national Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) aligned with International Organization for Migration inputs.
Operational activities include technical survey, clearance of antipersonnel mines and unexploded ordnance, risk education in communities, explosive ordnance disposal support to security forces, and victim assistance referrals. Programs have included accelerated clearance projects in areas affected by battles like the Battle of Kandahar (2001) and contamination from aerial campaigns associated with Operation Enduring Freedom. Implementing partners range from international NGOs such as HALO Trust and MAG to Afghan commercial operators trained under contracts supported by donors like the European Union and the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The centre also manages humanitarian mine action responses following natural disasters impacting risk exposure in regions like Badakhshan Province.
Funding streams have combined bilateral contributions from states including United States, United Kingdom, Norway, Germany, and multilateral support from entities such as the European Commission and the United Nations Development Programme. Partnerships extend to technical cooperation with the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, coordination with ICRC for victim support, and collaboration with Afghan ministries and provincial governor offices. Public–private engagements have involved equipment and training suppliers from countries such as Sweden and Italy, and donor conferences convened by the World Bank and the United Nations.
The centre has enabled large-scale clearance projects that reduced contamination in agricultural land, infrastructure corridors, and returnee settlements, contributing to livelihoods in provinces like Kunduz and Bamyan. Data-driven prioritization efforts improved targeting of high-impact areas for humanitarian access and reconstruction activities coordinated with UNHCR and World Food Programme operations. Persistent challenges include ongoing contamination from improvised explosive devices used by insurgent groups such as Taliban (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan), limitations in funding predictability, insecurity affecting access for operators, and post-conflict legacy issues tied to the Soviet–Afghan War and subsequent armed engagements. Technical constraints include complex terrain, ordnance types such as cluster munitions remnants, and capacity gaps in victim rehabilitation services linked to health systems overseen by Ministry of Public Health (Afghanistan).
The centre operates within Afghanistan’s national mine action policy and national technical standards harmonized with instruments like the Convention on Cluster Munitions and obligations debated in forums such as the International Court of Justice. It interfaces with legislation and directives issued by Afghan institutions including the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation and engages with international normative frameworks such as the Mine Ban Treaty discourse and United Nations Security Council resolutions addressing explosive ordnance hazards. Its standards and accreditation processes reflect guidance from the International Mine Action Standards and reporting mechanisms to partners including UNMAS and bilateral donors.
Category:Humanitarian mine action