| |
Albanian Mine Action Committee Meeting |
| December 14, 2006 |
|
|
|
|
AMAC Meeting |
|
Deputy Minister of Defence Mr. Petrit Karabina meeting with donors
|
On December 14th 2006, a meeting of the Albanian Mine Action Committee [AMAC] was held at the Albanian Armed Forces (AAF) Cultural Centre. The AMAC is chaired by the deputy Minister of Defense and is
comprised of senior officials from the Ministry of Defense, Ministry
of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Economics, Ministry of Finance,
Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Equal
Opportunities, and the Ministry of Science and Education. The main
international organizations present as AMAC observers included UNDP,
the European Commission (EC), UNICEF, ICRC, the International Trust
Fund of Demining and Victim Assistance [ITF], Danish Church Aid
(DCA), representatives from NATO, and representatives from Embassies
and donors of the Mine Action programme in Tirana including Bulgaria,
China, Czech Republic, France, Romania, and the United States.
The AMAC meeting was conducted by the head of the AMAC and the deputy
Minister of Defense, Mr. Petrit Karabina. Mr. Karabina updated the
AMAC members and observers on the current Mine Action situation in
Albania explaining that approximately 13 million m2 of the overall
15,250,000 m2 contaminated area in Northeast Albania has been cleared
and released back to the communities with DCA removing more than
11,040 antipersonnel mines and 4,492 unexploded ammunitions. Mr.
Karabina explained that the number of injured due to landmines
decreased from 155 casualties in 1999 to 2 casualties in 2005 and 0
injured in 2006 and 2007, largely a result of demining and mine risk
education activities. Victim assistance was provided through physical
rehabilitation of approximately 100 mine victims both in Albania and
abroad, as well as socio-economic reintegration programs targeting 67
landmine survivor beneficiaries to date.
The main objective of the Albanian Mine Action Programme is to clear
all of the landmines in Northeast Albania by 2010, within the
timeframe allotted to Albania upon signing and ratifying the Ottawa Treaty. Mr. Karabina, on behalf of the government of Albania,
expressed his gratification and appreciation to the international
community for the support provided to this program. He also stressed
the increasing role of the Albanian Government in order to provide
more support to achieving the goals of the Ottawa Convention.
Following Mr. Karabina's speech, AMAE specialists provided updates to
the participants on progress made, lessons learned, and plans for the
future in all components of the Mine Action Programme in Albania. The
representatives of the different ministries and members of AMAC
shared their relevant experience and stressed their assistance made
to the programme. The Ministry of Health in cooperation with the
Ministry of Defense voiced their putting aside $250,000 from their
2007 budget for the establishment of a new National Prosthetic Centre
at the Military Hospital.
AMAC observers, comprised mainly of representatives from the
aforementioned embassies, expressed their support for the progress
made in the Mine Action programme to date and promised further
assistance to the completion of the programme. In closing, the deputy
Minister of Defense Karabina expressed his gratification for the
assistance provided thus far by the international community,
particularly the US Department, the European Commission, and the
governments of Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Norway,
the United Kingdom, Canada, the Czech Republic and Turkey.
|
| |
 |
| |
| |
| Triage of Mine/UXO Survivors |
| November 07 - 09, 2006 |
| |
On November 7-9 2006, the triage of persons injured by landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) was organized in Northeast Albania by the Albanian Mine Action Executive (AMAE). The purpose of the triage was to assess the mine/UXO survivors in need of physical rehabilitation and to determine which mine/UXO survivors would be treated at the National Prosthetic & Orthotic Centre (NPOC) in Tirana and those classified as difficult cases to be treated at the Slovenian Institute of Rehabilitation in Ljubljana. The team of medical specialists was made up of prosthetic/orthotic technicians from the NPC and the Slovenian Institute of Rehabilitation and coordination of the event was done by AMAE with the local NGO-VMA. The team examined a total of 70 mine/UXO survivors from Tropoja, Has, and Kukes and selected 20 survivors to send to Slovenia for treatment.
|
| |
|
| |
| |
| Donor Trip to the Mine Affected Area in Northeast Albania |
| November 02, 2006 |
| |
| |
 |
| |
Danish Ambassador with Deputies of British and Czech Embassy |
On November 02, 2006, the Albanian Mine Action Executive (AMAE) with the international demining organization -Danish Church Aid (DCA) organized a field visit to the mine action operation area in northeastern Albania to celebrate the end of the demining season for 2006 and the progress as to date. Guests at the event included the Ambassador of the Danish Embassy, the Deputy Heads of Mission (DHM) for the UK and Czech Embassies, the Executive Director from DCA, and representatives from the International Trust Fund (ITF) in Slovenia, UNDP, the local government, AMAE, the local NGO-Victims of Mines and Weapons Association (VMA), and members of the local community.
The Danish Ambassador to Albania, who has been involved in the global anti-mine movement since the early stages in the 1990's, expressed his appreciation in participating in this significant activity for Albania and his support in freeing Albania of mines. The DHMs from the United Kingdom and the Czech Republic Embassies commented on their support provided in the past and confirmed their continued support for the future in order to help solve the mine problem in Albania by 2010.
To date, 80% of the known mine affected areas in Northeast Albania have been cleared from mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) under the Albanian Mine Action programme (AMAP). It is planned for DCA to significantly downsize in 2007 and to provide its final technical support in the development of a National Clearance Capacity (NCC), which will continue in completing the clearance of all known mine affected areas by 2010, keeping within the time-frame of the Ottawa Convention. |
| |
|
|
|
