Written question asked by Lord Steel of Aikwood (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 12 January 2016, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 26 January 2016. It was answered by Earl of Courtown (Conservative) on Monday, 25 January 2016 on behalf of the Department for International Development.

Landmines: Bomb Disposal

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government which countries they include in their Global Mine Action Programme, and whether they will consider adding Angola to that list.

Answer: The Global Mine Action Programme which runs from 2014 to 2017 funds mine action projects in Mozambique, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Further work in Burma, Somalia, South Sudan and Zimbabwe is currently being procured. The countries were selected following an inclusive consultation which took into account factors such as other donor funding and where the impact would be the greatest. In addition, DFID took the decision to shift the UK’s mine action funding to more fragile and conflict affected countries and where DFID could align mine action work with other DFID country programmes to maximise the impact. All funds have already been allocated under this programme therefore there is no scope for Angola to be included. This year DFID will reconsider the list of countries for future mine action programmes.

Secondary information