Mine action is a domain within humanitarian aid

Humanitarian aid

Humanitarian aid is material or logistical assistance provided for humanitarian purposes, typically in response to humanitarian crises including natural disaster and man-made disaster. The primary objective of humanitarian aid is to save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity...

 and development studies

Development studies

Development studies is a multidisciplinary branch of social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. It has historically placed a particular focus on issues related to social and economic development, and its relevance may therefore extend to communities and regions...

 concerned with activities which aim to reduce the social, economic and environmental impact of landmines and the explosive remnants of war

Explosive remnants of war

Explosive remnants of war is a term used in the humanitarian aid and sustainable development domains to describe the explosive threats remaining in post-conflict society...

 (ERW). Mine action deals with the many effects of landmine and ERW contamination on people and societies.

Description

Mine action is commonly represented as comprising five complementary groups of activities:

• Humanitarian demining
  Demining
  Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing either land mines, or naval mines, from an area, while minesweeping describes the act of detecting of mines. There are two distinct types of mine detection and removal: military and humanitarian.Minesweepers use many tools in order to accomplish...
  
  , i.e. mine and ERW survey, land release, mapping, marking and clearance
• Risk education (RE), i.e. the communication to the public of the risk of ERW and how to act in the presence of ERW
• Victim assistance, including rehabilitation and reintegration
• Stockpile destruction
• Advocacy
  Advocacy
  Advocacy is a political process by an individual or a large group which normally aims to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an...
  
   to promote policies and practices that will reduce the threat from landmines and ERW, usually in the context of disarmament
  Disarmament
  Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear arms...
  
   and international humanitarian law
  International humanitarian law
  International humanitarian law , often referred to as the laws of war, the laws and customs of war or the law of armed conflict, is the legal corpus that comprises "the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Conventions, as well as subsequent treaties, case law, and customary international law." It...
  
  . The most commonly applied treaties including the 1997 anti-personnel Mine Ban Treaty
  Ottawa Treaty
  The Ottawa Treaty or the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, officially known as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, aims at eliminating anti-personnel landmines around the world. , there were 158...
  
  , the Convention on Cluster Munitions
  Convention on Cluster Munitions
  The Convention on Cluster Munitions is an international treaty that prohibits the use, transfer and stockpile of cluster bombs, a type of explosive weapon which scatters submunitions over an area. The convention was adopted on 2008 in Dublin, and was opened for signature on 2008 in Oslo...
  
  , the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons
  Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons
  The United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons , concluded at Geneva on October 10, 1980 and entered into force in December 1983, seeks to prohibit or restrict the use of certain conventional weapons which are considered excessively injurious or whose effects are indiscriminate.The...
  
   and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
  Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
  The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is an international human rights instrument of the United Nations intended to protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities...
  
  .

The objective of mine action is to reduce the risk caused by landmines and ERW to a level where people can live safely. This state is a situation in which economical, social and health development can occur free from the constraints imposed by landmine and ERW contamination, and in which the victims’ needs can be addressed.
The coordination of mine action activities in affected countries is commonly conducted by Mine Action Coordination Center

Mine Action Coordination Center

A Mine Action Coordination Centre is an agency established in a region under the auspices of the United Nations to coordinate the clearing of the explosive remnants of war - including landmines and unexploded ordnance...

s (MACC) managed either by the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

 or the host country government.

See also

• Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining
• Mine clearance agencies
  Mine clearance agencies
  A mine clearance agency, or demining agency, is an organization involved in removal of landmines and Unexploded Ordnance for military, humanitarian, or commercial reasons....
  
  
• Unexploded ordnance
  Unexploded ordnance
  Unexploded ordnance are explosive weapons that did not explode when they were employed and still pose a risk of detonation, potentially many decades after they were used or discarded.While "UXO" is widely and informally used, munitions and explosives of...
  
  

External links

• E-mine UN's electronic mine information network
• International Mine Action Standards IMAS