The US Department of State provided $323,668 to the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) to cover the cost of landmine clearance in five provinces in Cambodia for the first two months this year.
Mr. Heng Ratana, CMAC's Director General, on Thursday, wrote on his Facebook page stating that the grant was given to Cambodia through the Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), NGO working to clear landmines in the kingdom. And the signing ceremony for the grant took place at CMAC's headquarters in Phnom Penh, in the presence of Mr. Aksel Steen Nilsen, Country Director of the NPA.
Mr. Ratana added that the grant was given to clear landmines in five provinces - Kampong Cham, Tbong Khmum, Kratie, Svay Rieng, and Prey Veng.
"The grant is for the first two months in 2018 to let CMAC have enough time to be prepared for the bid of the $4-million-grant for the year 2018-2019," wrote Mr. Ratana on his Facebook page.
He also said that last year, the US government provided $2.1 million to CMAC through the NPA. The grant helped CMAC to clear 65 square kilometers of landmines, and more than 20,000 mines and unexploded remnant of war were destroyed.
According to Mr. Ratana, in 2018, CMAC would work to clear landmines and unexploded remnant of war on 117 square kilometers of land. Besides landmines, CMAC would also work to instruct people living in 700 target villages to be able to rescue people eventually injured from mines or unexploded ordnance.
Previously, Mr. Ratana wrote that the Kingdom of Cambodia is one of the countries that ratified the "Ottawa Convention" that seeks to forbid the use of anti-personnel landmines (APLs) worldwide.
As a result, the convention calls on any state-party to assist other states-parties in aiding mine victims, providing demining assistance, and helping with mine destruction. However, the United States, Russia, and China did not ratify the convention.
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