01 July 2001

Fact Sheet: U.S. Humanitarian Demining Program in the Americas

The U.S. State Department issued a fact sheet July 1, highlighting aspects of the United States' humanitarian demining program in the Americas.

The initiative "seeks to relieve human suffering while promoting U.S. interests" and to reduce landmine-related civilian casualties by "helping to establish and support sustainable indigenous mine action capabilities in mine-affected nations," according to the State Department. Since fiscal year 1993, total U.S. spending on humanitarian demining in the Americas has been $19,972,002.

Following is the text of the fact sheet, with further details:

Fact Sheet
Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Office of Humanitarian Demining Programs
Washington, D.C.
July 1, 2001
United States Humanitarian Demining Program in the Americas

The U.S. Government's Humanitarian Demining Program seeks to relieve human suffering while promoting U.S. interests. The Program's objectives are to reduce civilian casualties, create conditions for the return of refugees and displaced persons to their homes, reinforce an affected country's stability, and encourage international cooperation and participation. The Program seeks to accomplish these objectives by helping to establish and support sustainable indigenous mine action capabilities in mine-affected nations. Since FY 1993, the United States has committed almost $500 million to global mine action initiatives, including research and development.

• Among the nations of the Western Hemisphere, 13 are considered landmine/UXO-affected. The United States is providing humanitarian demining assistance to five of these countries: Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Peru.

• Since FY93, total U.S. spending on humanitarian demining in the Americas has been $19,972,502.

• Mine awareness training and materials, such as the Superman/Wonder Woman mine awareness comic book, have helped to reduce landmine casualties.

• U.S. Special Operations Forces have trained nearly 600 deminers in Central and South America.

• Deminers have cleared more than 3,600,000 square meters of land in the Americas, making previously mined fields available for farming and other agricultural use.

• More than 62,500 mines and 134,000 pieces of UXO have been destroyed.

• The United States provided mine-detection dogs to Costa Rica, Honduras, and Nicaragua. The OAS has taken over administrative control of these programs.

• Honduras is expected to declare itself mine-safe in 2001, and the United States estimates that Guatemala and Costa Rica will be able to declare themselves mine-safe in 2002.

See http://www.state.gov/g/inl/rls/fs/index.cfm for all Fact Sheets