The German Ministry of Foreign Affairs has pledged 970,000 EUR (roughly 1.3 million USD) for Vietnam’s central provinces to clear mines, bombs and unexploded ordnance (UXO) left from the war.

The benefiting provinces are Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Binh.

2013 marks the 15 th year the German Ministry has assisted Vietnam in addressing war consequences, thus significantly contributing to improving the living environment in central Vietnam.

Since 1998, the ministry has provided 10.25 million EUR (13.7 million USD) for bomb and mine clearance projects in Vietnam.

Germany’s non-governmental organisation Solidaritatsdienst International e.V. (SODI) has worked closely with the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence and local authorities in these efforts.

Last December, a workshop was held in Hanoi to enhance partnerships in post-war action against mines in Vietnam part of the national action plan to manage unexploded ordnance between 2010 and 2015 (Programme 504).

It was reported that each year, Vietnam has to spend trillions of dong on mine clearance, treatment of victims, and dealing with direct and indirect aftermath of UXO.

The country has cleared 100,000s of hectares of land contaminated with mines and improved the mine clearance capacity of local staff.

The Government has paid due attention to the resettlement of local people in unsafe areas, while the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA), localities and NGOs have conducted programmes to help the victims of unexploded bombs integrate into the community.

It is expected that by 2015, 500,000 hectares of contaminated land will be cleared to serve economic development and social security.-VNA