MORE THAN $400 MILLION NEEDED TO CLEAR LANDMINES NEXT YEAR - UN ANALYSIS

MORE THAN $400 MILLION NEEDED TO CLEAR LANDMINES NEXT YEAR – UN ANALYSIS
New York, Nov 20 2007 7:00PM
Proposed initiatives to remove landmines and explosive remnants of war in some 30 countries and three territories around the world are expected to cost $404 million next year, according to a report jointly published by three United Nations agencies and released today.

The Portfolio of Mine Action Projects, an annual analysis by the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations' Mine Action Service, the UN Development Programme (<"http://www.undp.org/">UNDP) and the UN Children's Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org/">UNICEF), notes that countries planning those initiatives have already secured $40 million from international donors.

Maxwell Gaylard, the Director of the UN Mine Action Service, said that level of donor support augurs well for mine action next year.

"However, the remaining funding gap for next year still totals $365 million, and it is hoped that the donor community will again rally to the formidable challenges of mine action," he said.

The Portfolio focuses only on mine action programmes that are supported or managed by the UN.
2007-11-20 00:00:00.000

___________________

For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news
To listen to news and in-depth programmes from UN Radio go to: http://radio.un.org/

_______________________________

To change your profile or unsubscribe go to:
http://www.un.org/apps/news/email/