This month, the Mines Advisory Group (MAG)-a humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding organisation–is marking its 30th anniversary of operations in Laos.
Since 1994, MAG has worked with communities and authorities across Khammuan and Xieng Khuang provinces to find, remove, and destroy hundreds of thousands of bombs leftover from the war.
Laos is the most heavily bombed country in the world per capita. From 1964 to 1973, more than two million tons of explosive ordnance were dropped on the country.
The scale of the bombing is the equivalent of a planeload of bombs being dropped every eight minutes, 24 hours a day, for nine years. This included 270 million cluster submunitions, of which an estimated 30 percent failed to detonate on impact, meaning they remain alive, contaminating the land, for decades.
MAG currently employs over 1,200 staff in Laos, many of whom are from communities heavily impacted by the conflict and the subsequent contamination.
Over the last 30 years, MAG’s impact has been transformative, benefitting nearly 1.2 million people by: Clearing over 136 square kilometres of land.
Responding to over 37,000 callouts from people reporting dangerous items.
Finding and destroying over 340,000 items of unexploded ordnance.
Delivering over 4,500 risk education sessions with guidance on how to recognise, avoid, and report threats, reaching more than 153,000 people living in contaminated areas.
“As we celebrate 30 years of MAG’s work in Laos, we are honouring the remarkable dedication of our staff members who have worked hand-in-hand with communities to ensure land can be returned safely to them. Their hard work and commitment to making their communities safer have transformed countless lives. This anniversary is a testament to their efforts and the resilience of the people we serve,” said MAG Laos Country Director, Eli Mechanic.
With approximately 2,000 square kilometres of confirmed hazardous areas still requiring clearance, it is paramount that support for unexploded ordnance (UXO) survey and clearance in Laos continues and people can live and use their land without fear of deadly accidents.
“For over 30 years, the United States has provided more than US$400 million towards UXO clearance efforts and support for victims. We are currently supporting over 200 clearance teams, which have cleared more land this year than in any previous year,” said United States Ambassador to Laos, Heather Variava.
“We are making progress, but we know we need to do more, and we are committed to working with partners like MAG to ensure Laos meets its goal of removing UXO as a barrier to national development.”
The majority of land cleared by MAG of cluster munitions and other UXO is agricultural land.
Humanitarian mine action can and does have an incredible impact on agriculture, development initiatives and food security, with reverberating positive effects on communities previously restricted by the presence of ordnance.
“The UK Government is one of the largest bilateral donors supporting UXO clearance work in Laos,” said United Kingdom’s Ambassador to Laos, Mel Barlow. “We are proud to support MAG and to celebrate their 30-year commitment to life-saving work in Laos. I was privileged to visit their work in Xieng Khuang and learn how this is reducing injuries and returning land to communities, directly contributing to the development of Laos.”
As MAG commemorates this significant milestone, the organisation remains steadfast in its commitment to working with the Lao government, development partners, and conflict-affected communities until the country is free from the threat of unexploded ordnance.
This commitment, along with robust international support and community engagement, is essential in paving the way for a safer and more prosperous future for Laos.
