» Why does MAG work in Angola?
MAG has been active in the country since 1994, when the organisation began work in Moxico Province, eastern Angola.
Four years later however, fighting in the province, following the breakdown of various peace agreements, resulted in the temporary suspension of MAG operations. As it became increasingly apparent that refugees would not be repatriated in the foreseeable future, mine awareness in neighbouring countries such as Zambia and Democratic Republic of Congo was also temporarily suspended.
At the direct request of INAROEE, the Angolan national coordination body which was superceded by CNIDAH (Comissâo Nacional Intersectorial de Desminagem e Assistência Humanitária), MAG set up new humanitarian mine action operations in Cunene Province in southern Angola with an operations base in the provincial capital Ondjiva. In April 1999, the first two mine action teams were deployed in the province. By 2005, MAG had pulled out of Cunene having cleared all high and most medium impacted sites.
Following changes in the military and security situation, MAG returned to Luena, Moxico Province, in September 2000 and began operating a small programme fielding two Emergency Response Teams and three Community Liaison/Mine Awareness Teams. Before 1998, MAG had worked in both government and UNITA (National Union for the Total Independence of Angola) areas, but from MAG’s return in September 2000 to August 2002 operations were limited to within just 30km of the provincial capital, Luena.
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Following a 27-year civil war, Angola is one of the most landmine-contaminated countries in the world. [photo: Michael Fryer] |
With the signing of the peace agreement in April 2002 after Jonas Savimbi's death in Moxico, travel restrictions began to be lifted as the security situation improved and roads opened. This enabled access to areas that had previously been inaccessible and also laid the foundations for the future repatriation of Angolan refugees.
The UNHCR repatriation process commenced in July 2003, overseeing the return of up to 1,200 refugees per week from refugee camps in Zambia, D.R. Congo and Namibia. They were returning from a mine-free area to one of the most heavily mined areas in the world. It was vital that adequate support was provided to ensure that risks were minimised and information about the mines and remnants of conflict was passed on to the refugees and the agencies supporting them. When the UNHCR repatriation process finally finished in early 2007, a total of 409,450 individuals had returned, 50 per cent of whom had settled in Moxico.
In mid 2003, MAG opened new operations bases in Luau (on the D.R. Congo/Angola border), Kazombo and Lumbala Nguimbo (close to the Zambia/Angola border) to support the UNHCR repatriation process with Mine Risk Education for returnees, mine/remnants of conflict clearance and marking activities. During 2005, MAG established an operations base in Saurimo, Lunda Sul Province. Its primary aim was to carry out Community Liaison, clearance and emergency ordnance disposal (EOD) activities in Lunda Sul and Lunda Norte Provinces.
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As a direct result of the road clearance and verification undertaken by MAG since early 2005, it is now possible for the first time in decades to travel safely on 250km of primary road running deep into the interior of Moxico Province. |
In January 2006, MAG signed a contract with the Survey Action Centre (SAC) to undertake the LIS in Moxico and Lunda Sul. By March 2006, all data collection had been completed with MAG concluding that 237,088 people were daily impacted by landmines.
In early 2007, following the discontinuation of EC funding, MAG pulled out of the Lundas and Luau, and relocated all resources and teams to Luena. With a consolidation of resources, MAG continued its work exclusively in Moxico Province and by August 2007 had opened up 250km of primary route running through the middle of the Province.
Bradley Guerrant, WFP Country Director in Angola commented that: "This road is a vital lifeline for the entire region and tens of thousands of people will now be able to move around freely again…. Families and communities in this part of eastern Angola have been cut off for years but now they have the opportunity to start rebuilding their lives, boosting the socio-economic development of the entire region."
By early 2008, MAG continued to work in the most highly impacted areas in Moxico Province, providing Mine Risk Education and identifying, removing and destroying landmines and other remnants of conflict.
MAG now has:
• Approximately 180 Angolan staff
• Seven international staff
• Three Mine Action Teams
• One Rapid Response Team
• Three Community Liaison Teams
• Two Mechanical Operations Units, consisting of five machines
• One Impact Assessment Team
June 2008
