Ly Thuch, first vice-president of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), presented the results of the Kingdom’s mine clearance action on its development to a UN commission which is meeting in Bangkok, Thailand.
A May 15 press release from the CMAA announced that the 79th session of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP) is being held from May 15-19.
This year’s session is being held with the theme of “Accelerating climate action in Asia and the Pacific for sustainable development”.
“The CMAA – in cooperation with the ESCAP Commission – held a meeting on “Mine clearance for sustainable development”, and arranged a display of images of mine action in Cambodia which highlighted the progress, challenges and future direction of mine action in Cambodia,” it said.
The meeting was attended by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, undersecretary-general of the UN and executive secretary of the ESCAP, ASEAN secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn, Cambodian ambassador to Thailand Hun Saroeun, and several representatives of international institutions and UN partners.
Addressing the meeting, Thuch said that the Kingdom’s 30 years of achievements had come as a result of the government’s determination to put an end to the civil war and deliver peace.
“Prime Minister Hun Sen’s win-win policy enabled the successful work of the CMAA and the safe development of the country,” he added.
“We created the National Mine Action Strategy 2018-2025 to achieve the goal of a mine-free Cambodia by 2025,” he explained.
Thuch said that these issues were also included in the Rectangular Strategy Phase IV and the National Strategic Development Plan 2019-2023.
“Landmines in Cambodia did not just have an impact on victims and their families, but seriously affected the development of the economy,” he said.
“Nonetheless, we will clear the remaining 563sq km of mine fields by 2025, and have formulated a national policy to address the risk of unexploded ordnance after 2025,” he added.
