The Albanian government, working in conjunction with various governments and organisations, is slowly working its way towards establishing a stronger national mine action programme and, eventually, a mine-free Albania.

by Jab Swart, CTA, Albanian Mine Action Programme

The Mine Action Problem

The mine and UXO threat in northeast Albania emanated from the Kosovo conflict; it extends across a 120-km border between Albania and Kosovo, from Shistavec to the Montenegro border in the north, to up to 20 km inside Albania. After the Albanian Armed Forces’ (AAF’s) Level One Survey in 1999, 102 areas were identified, representing 15,250,000 sq m. The threat includes AP and AT mines laid by Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) forces, UXO and sub-munitions from FYR rocket artillery and at least six North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) cluster strikes within Albanian territory. An added complication is that no records of minefields are available for Albania. None of this has been caused by Albania. As a matter of fact, NATO requested that the AAF not get involved in the conflict, and Albania had to look on helplessly while its territory was contaminated.

Socio-Economic Impact

The population of the Kukes prefecture (almost 120,000—of which 75 percent live in rural areas) is among the poorest in Albania, if not in all of Europe. Landmines and UXO directly affect 39 villages. The average size of a farm is 1.5 ha, and main activities consist of grazing, farming, gathering firewood and other subsistence livelihoods. Poverty and the pressure for land are further exacerbated by the fact that 75 percent of the terrain in the north is mountainous, not including land contaminated by mines and UXO. Although most people have been informed and educated about the threat of mines, some still risk getting killed and injured by working in mine-infested areas because of economic pressure. From 1999 to January of 2003, 202 mine/UXO accidents happened. Twenty-seven people were killed and 216 were injured in northeast Albania. Approximately one-third of these victims were of the economically active age group (15–30), and half of them were injured or killed while farming, grazing cattle or going to school.

The mine problem has also had an impact on infrastructure development. In 2002, 88,379 sq m had to be cleared by Danish Church Aid-Action by Churches Together (DCA-ACT) and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) for the construction of a critical road connection between Bajram Curri and Gjakova. The impact of mine contamination on the social environment should not be underestimated. Some water sources in northeast Albania are still blocked by mined areas. The entire Albania/Kosovo border, prime land for eco-tourism development, is a wasteland because of mines and UXO.

Impact on Border Management

A grave consequence of mine contamination is the added difficulty of patroling borders between Albania and Kosovo, where trafficking and other crimes take place on a cross-border basis. Since the end of the Kosovo crisis, 13 police officers have already been wounded or killed by mines and UXO while executing their duties. Patrolling is almost impossible because it takes one to two hours to respond to a border incident due to mine/UXO contamination. This is a weak point regarding integrated border management in southeast Europe. It was reported from the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) that criminals have identified and cleared lanes in minefields through which they pass unfettered to and from Kosovo where police cannot reach them and respond effectively. In September 2002, two border control posts had to be opened in Shistavec and Orgjost. The proposed positions were found to be on land suspected of being mined. A total area of 6,162 sq m had to be verified by the FSD before it could be declared safe for use.

Albanian Response and Commitment

During the Albanian crisis in 1997, at least 15 government ordnance depots were destroyed and looted, leaving tons of dangerous munitions scattered around and threatening the lives of civilians. Up to 2,000 persons were reported killed or seriously injured as a result of this emergency. The AAF started clearing up these 15 so-called “Hot Spots” in 1998 and is still in the process of mopping up the last remnants of that situation.

After the Kosovo crisis in 1999, the Albanian government responded swiftly in conducting rapid surface clearance, which drastically reduced civilian casualties. However, this was not done according to International Mine Action Standards (IMAS) and all the areas had to be re-cleared. Shortly after the re-clearing, the AAF conducted a Level One Survey, which indicated that most of the border area is still contaminated.

Albania ratified both the Ottawa Treaty and Amended Protocol II (AP II) in accordance with the 1980 Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW). Towards the end of 1999, the Albanian government decided to adopt IMAS and established a structure to implement humanitarian mine action. In order to adequately coordinate mine action, an inter-ministerial body, the Albanian Mine Action Committee (AMAC), was formed in October 1999. This body is the overall executive and policymaking body for mine action in Albania. The Deputy Minister of Defence chairs this committee with a membership drawn from the Ministries of Environment, Local Government and Decentralisation, Health, Public Order, Foreign Affairs, Finance and Economy; the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative; the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC); and other major donors. The terms of reference for the AMAC include the following:

• Providing a national focus of mine action
• Seeking donor funding and assistance for the demining programme
• Prioritising demining efforts in Albania
• Sensitising the international community to the mine threat in Albania
• Complying with the Ottawa Treaty through destruction of the stockpile of AP mines

At the same time, an operational body, the Albanian Mine Action Executive (AMAE), was established to carry out a mine action programme under the direction of the AMAC. Its functions are to:

• Produce and maintain a mine action programme.
• Coordinate, oversee and monitor all mine action activities that are in line with AMAC priorities.
• Accredit and validate the quality of mine action management activities.
• Collect, collate, maintain and disseminate mine- and UXO-related data and statistics.
• Monitor and report on the demining progress.
• Survey and mark mine-contaminated areas.
• Produce and maintain mine action procedures based on UN Standards.
• Investigate all mine-related incidents and accidents.
• Liaise with external mine action bodies.

Material and in-kind support from the Albanian government from 1998 until 2003 for mine action and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) programmes will total $1,583,600 (U.S.) (see Table 1).

Item	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	Total
Level One Survey		$25,640					$25,640
Surface clearance		$38,460					$38,460
Stockpile destruction project			$41,525	$83,050	$41,525		$166,100
Support to AMAE		$3,700	$3,700	$3,700	$3,700		$14,800
Support to demining
Clearance of mines and ordnance at “Hot Spots”		$101,700	$101,700	$101,700	$101,700	$101,700	$508,500
Assistance to humani-tarian demining				$500	$600	$31,000	$32,100
Assistance to mine victims and victims of “Hot Spots”	$133,000	$133,000	$133,000	$133,000	$133,000	$133,000	$798,000
Grand total	$133,000	$302,500	$279,925	$321,950	$280,525	$265,700	$1,583,600
Table 1: Support from the Albanian government to the Albanian Mine Action Programme.

APM Stockpile Destruction Programme

Albania ratified the Ottawa Treaty on 29 February 2000, and the Stockpile Destruction Project commenced 15 January 2001 with Canadian assistance. Demilitarisation was based on reverse assembly, and recycling was a major aspect. The last of 1,683,860 APM were demilitarised on 4 April 2002, two years ahead of the obligatory period in terms of the Ottawa Treaty. The benefits of this project to the region are:

• Albanian compliance with Article 4 of the Ottawa Treaty.
• Elevation of the status of Albania as a responsible party to the Ottawa Treaty.
• Increased national and regional security.
• Socio-economic benefits for the people of Albania.
• Enhancement of demilitarisation capabilities in the region.
• Setting the pace regarding APM stockpile destruction in southeastern Europe.

Policy, Strategy and Advocacy

A national workshop was held in June 2002, formulating a vision, mission, some priorities and a three-year plan. The decisions of this workshop are:

1. A vision for an Albania free from mines and UXO by 2010.
2. A mission to develop and implement a sustainable mine action programme in order to eliminate the effect of mines and UXO in northeast Albania by 2005.
3. Goals for the Albanian Mine Action Programme to:
• Create a legal framework and policy for mine action by December 31, 2003.
• Implement mine action policy, the strategic plan and priorities for mine action by December 31, 2003.
• Develop and implement a national mine action database by August 31, 2003.
• Clear all of the high- and medium-priority mine- and UXO-contaminated areas in northeastern Albania by the end of 2005.
• Implement a strategy to raise awareness of the mine action situation on the northeast border of Albania by December 31, 2003.
• Rehabilitate the most serious mine victims (permanent disability) by 2005.
• Establish a credible and sustainable national mine action capability by 2005.
• Mobilise adequate resources to complete the mine action mission by December 2005.

In 2003, the policy-level priorities will be to regularise the activities of AMAC formulation, to ratify a comprehensive mine action policy and to pass national legislation in terms of Article 9 of the Ottawa Treaty.

Capacity Building

A two-year UNDP capacity-building programme commenced in April 2002, funded for 18 months by UNDP, the International Trust Fund (ITF) and the Department for International Development (DFID) to assist AMAC with the formulation of policy, strategy, a national mine action plan and priorities for mine action. Assistance to AMAE entails the establishment of a sustainable structure capable of coordinating all mine action in Albania.

The UNDP employs two Technical Advisors, one Chief Technical Advisor and an Information Advisor from the Swiss General Staff, to assist the AMAC with advice on policy, strategy and legal structures. Priorities for mine action to achieve the mission were implemented. A fully functional AMAE was established with UNDP, European Union (EU) and ITF assistance, including an integral Quality Management (QM) section with a regional office in northeastern Albania. These assisting groups introduced a complete set of AMAE Technical & Safety Standards (TSSs) based on IMAS.

The Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) capacity-building priorities for this year are to optimise operations integration and conduct further in-service training of the QM Team on quality assurance and quality control. Management training of the AMAE staff is also a high priority, including middle management training of managers, exchange of managers with other Mine Action Centers (MACs) and study tours to neighbouring MACs. Lastly, AMAE will be assisted to effect the completion of the impact and technical surveys of northeastern Albania, as well as with the monitoring of clearance and training standards.

Demining

DCA-ACT and the FSD have been deployed for demining since 2002, mostly with the U.S. State Department, ITF, EU and Germany. The ICRC and the American Red Cross (ARC) assisted actively in creating an atmosphere conducive to demining. More than 70 percent of the impact surveys were accurately redone and technical surveys initiated by the end of 2002 with internal resources. With increased coordination and more efficient utilisation of demining assets, more than 7,000,000 sq m of formerly contaminated land were released through survey and clearance during 2002.

In 2003, the demining assets of FSD and DCA were expanded to three survey teams, eight manual demining teams, a Bozena I mini-flail and one mine detection dog team (MDDT). With these resources, they are planning to complete more impact surveys (releasing a further 1,990,000 sq m) and clear at least 350,000 additional sq m. The clearance of all contaminated areas in northeastern Albania will then be 61 percent completed (see Table 2).

Year	2000–2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	Total Reduction 2002–2005
Contaminated Area (sq m)	15,250,000	13,250,000	6,232,000	2,447,000	571,000	181,000
Reduction by Impact Survey (sq m)	938,000	5,893,000	2,990,000	—	—	—	9,821,000 sq m
Reduction by Technical Survey (sq m)	637,000	675,000	445,000	1,496,000	—	—	3,253,000 sq m
Reduction by Clearance (sq m)	425,000	450,000	350,000	380,000	390,000	—	1,995,000 sq m
Total Reduction (sq m)	2,000,000	7,018,000	3,785,000	1,876,000	390,000	—	15,069,000 sq m
Table 2: Past, present and estimated contaminated and reduced area in Albania.

Technical Survey

UNDP will implement a 21-month EU-funded technical survey project by August 2003. The aim of the Technical Survey Project is to accurately delineate all of the minefields and battle areas in northeastern Albania and thereby contribute to the overall mission of the Albanian Mine Action Programme of freeing northeastern Albania from mines and UXO by 2005.

A technical survey organisation will be established, consisting of six manual technical survey teams, two MDDTs and one mechanical survey team. The technical survey will be managed by the management team of the UNDP mine action programme and coordinated by the AMAE. The technical survey organisation will be converted into a national demining organisation by the end of 2004. When funding is secured, demining priorities will be determined and demining tasks will be issued.

By completing the technical survey project, minefields and battle areas will be accurately defined. These areas can be marked, and communities will be informed of their proximity and dangers. Resource mobilisation can be focussed on accurate estimations of the threat, and scarce clearance resources can be tasked to clear according to priorities and suitability of assets. This will lead to the following benefits:

• A measure of integrated border management on the Albania/Kosovo border will be restored.
• Civilian casualties can be avoided.
• A cost-effective utilisation of clearance assets will be established.

IMSMA

A functional IMSMA Cell was established in 2002 with ITF and Swiss support, and the database was populated with up-to-date mine action information. Albanian maps were geo-referenced from a Krasovsky projection to a Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) 35 projection with EU and ITF support. An Albanian IT Chief was appointed, an internal information QM system was implemented and IMSMA was updated to Version three. In the regional context, the Albanian government and the ITF reached an agreement regarding information exchange. In the year ahead, efforts will be focussed to ensure full operations, database management training and the formulation of internal standard operating procedures (SOPs).

Mine Risk Education (MRE)

Most of the 39 communities directly affected by landmines and UXO were reached by the end of 2001, but people were still being killed and injured by mines and UXO as recently as January 2003. The physical delineation of known mine- and UXO-contaminated territory along the Albania-Kosovo border has been problematic due to:

• Constant theft of minefield marking posts. (This is due to a shortage of fencing materials and fuel in the mine-affected areas.)
• Inclement weather during winter months, preventing access to mined areas.
• Lack of resources.

AMAE and CARE International completed a survey of MRE activities in the fall of 2002. It was carried out in the three districts of Kukes and covered all the priority villages identified by AMAE. The survey covered 4.5 percent of the population of the selected villages and attempted to sample all relevant population groups. The overall results show a good level of MRE coverage throughout the area. The following were the main findings of the survey:

• There was an average of 54.5 percent participation in MRE activities over the survey area, with 56.3 percent participation in Has, 54.1 percent in Kukes and 53.1 percent in Tropoje.
• Of the participants, 54.9 percent were male, 52.5 percent were female, 69.2 percent were under 17 years of age, 56.8 percent were aged between 17 and 49 years and 32.8 percent were 50 years or over.
• There have been consistent levels of MRE activities between 2000 and 2002. Of those surveyed, 55.1 percent participated in 2000, 54.3 percent in 2001 and 51.1 percent in 2002. CARE, a local non-governmental organisation (NGO) called the Victims of Mines and Weapons Association (VMA), the Albanian Red Cross and the Swiss Foundation for Demining have primarily carried out these activities.
• Overall, of those who participated in MRE activities, 80.2 percent can correctly describe a mine, as opposed to only 58.2 percent of those who had not participated in such activities.
• The existence of mines in and around these villages continues to have a significant effect, especially in terms of economic activity. A total of 69.9 percent of those surveyed stated a need to enter mine-affected areas. Of the reasons given, 24.7 percent wanted a safe way to go to work, 24.5 percent needed more land to graze animals, 11.7 percent needed more land to collect firewood, 4.2 percent wanted land to collect winter animal feed, 3.3 percent wanted the ability to travel to a market to sell products and, most notably, 1.7 percent needed a way cleared so they can get to school.
• Sixty-two percent of those who reported that they needed to enter mined areas have not received MRE. Taking into account the fact that only 58.2 percent of those who have not participated in MRE activities can correctly describe a mine in comparison to 80.2 percent of those who have, there is still room for targeted MRE activities in Kukes, Has and Tropoje.

The MRE strategy was therefore revised in the fall of 2002. The framework of this strategy is:

1. A vision to prevent all mine and UXO incidents in northeastern Albania.
2. A mission for AMAE/AMAC to direct and coordinate the implementation of an MRE Strategy in northeastern Albania forthwith as an integral part of the AMAP in order to effectively reach all targeted groups by 2005.
3. Goals for:
• AMAC/AMAE to direct and coordinate the implementation of the MRE Strategy by October 31, 2002.
• Implementing Partners (IPs) to reach all targeted groups in northeastern Albania in collaboration with demining companies, communities and national/local authorities by 2005.
• All IPs to ensure a sustainable national MRE Programme through 2005.

Target groups were readjusted and it was decided to concentrate on the following in 2003:

• Focussing on the economically active age group of ages 15–30 and on those living in remote villages.
• Further assessing gender issues relating to women as a potential target group.
• Implementing an effective way to permanently mark mined and battle areas.
• Raising awareness of the mine action problem nationally and internationally.
• Implementing an integrated structure to involve all of the IPs including AMAE, UNICEF, ICRC, the Albanian Red Cross, VMA, demining organisations and village anti-mining committees.
• Implementing a more durable and permanent minefield marking system.

Victim Assistance

The Tirana Orthopaedic Centre was upgraded and is operated by the Albanian government with support from the EU and Handicap International (HI). Fourteen prosthesis technicians from the centre trained with Italian and ITF support. With ICRC assistance, 147 victims were treated and prostheses fitted in Albania. Sixty-two victims received advanced treatment and fitment of prostheses at the Slovenian Rehabilitation Institute with ITF assistance. Twelve victims were assisted by the ICRC to set up small enterprises. Several laws now afford the disabled special privileges. The Albanian monthly disability pension was recently increased. A broad integrated victim assistance strategy was adopted in Albania. The goal of this strategy is to build a sustainable Albanian mine action capability by 2005. Its objectives are to:

• Fit prostheses to priority lower-limb amputees in Albania.
• Fit prostheses to upper-limb amputees abroad (Slovenia).
• Rehabilitate sight-impaired victims abroad.
• Build the capacity of Albanian institutions to fit all types of prostheses and orthoses in Albania by 2005.
• Build a victim rehabilitation capacity in Albania by 2005.
• Develop the capacity in northeastern Albania to surgically treat trauma and amputee victims and serve as a level three medical facility for victims of demining accidents.
• Conduct economic reintegration of mine victims through a micro-financing scheme.

The main goal of victim assistance planning from 2003 is to establish an Albanian capacity by 2005 (see Table 3).

Serial  Activity  Duration Total Budget  1. Implementing the victim assistance strategy 2003 —  2. Providing advocacy for victims 2003–2005  $3,000  3. Treating 30 upper-limb amputees per year, including three sight-impaired victims abroad 2003–2005  $300,000  4. Provision of raw materials to the Tirana Orthopedic Centre with ICRC support 2003–2005  $15,000  5. Treating 30 lower-limb victims in Albania per year with ICRC support 2003–2005  $21,000  6. Training three doctors from northeastern Albania in advanced surgical procedures (trauma and amputations) over three years 2003–2005  $30,000  7. Improving surgical facilities in northeastern Albania 2003–2004  $92,000  8. Training six orthopedic technicians in upper-limb prostheses and orthoses 2003–2005  $15,000  9. Training of six doctors/nurses in basic physiotherapy 2003–2005  $15,000  10. Conducting a survey to determine further areas of economic integration of the families of 243 victims 2003  $5,000  11. Providing micro-finance to assist with reintegration of victims, basically bee-keeping and animal husbandry 2003–2005  $150,000  12. Transitional strategy implemented to ensure a sustainable Albanian victim assistance capacity is in place by 2005 2003–2005 —  13. Management 2003–2005  $65,000 Total   $711,000

Table 3: Victim Assistance Planning.

Transition Strategy

The Albanian government will assume almost full responsibility of its mine action programme by the end of 2005. After 2005, there will be a reduced mine action programme allowing for a leaner structure with only low-impact areas left to demine. An Albanian capacity for demining and victim assistance will be fully established by 2005; the MRE objectives will mostly have been reached and a solid resource mobilisation base will have been established.

Funding

Previous and current donors include the UNDP, EU, DFID, ITF, ICRC and the Canadian, Danish, German, Swiss, Turkish and U.S. governments. In June 2002, the EU reached a consensus to fund mine action in Albania “as far as possible” through the CARDS programme (Integrated Border Management Project). Of the $5.068 million budget for 2003, $4.49 million has already been funded, leaving a shortfall of $0.578 million. The total budget for the ensuing years until 2005 will be around $3.9 million per annum.

Activity Funding 2002  Budget 2003 Mobilised Shortfall Capacity Building and Coordination of mine action (Implemented by UNDP) UNDP: $119,000 EU/ITF: $27,000 DFID: $125,000 Total: $271,000 $420,000 DFID: $225,000 UNDP: $90,000 (2002) ITF: $5,000 (2002) $100,000 Technical survey — $2,000,000 EU pledge: €2 m — Demining FSD EU/ITF: $330,000 Switzerland: $330,000 Germany/HELP: $300,000 FSD; $70,000 Total: $1,030,000 $1,000,000 EU, Germany and ITF: $1,000,000   — Demining DCA-ACT ACT Holland: $350,000 DCA-ACT: $363,700 Danida: $297,895 U.S.: $43,500 Luxembourg: $48,000 Other: $158,900 Total: $1,261,995 $1,300,000 $1,000,000 mostly from EU and matching funds from ITF $300,000 Victim Assistance ITF: $100,000 ICRC: $35,000 Total: $135,000 $255,000 $140,000, pledges from ITF and ICRC $115,000 MRE UNICEF: $71,000 $93,000 $30,000 $63,000 (UNICEF pledge?) TOTAL $2,698,000 $5,068,000 $4,490,000 $578,000

Table 4: Funding 2002–2003.

Conclusions

There is a significant mine and UXO threat in northeastern Albania, but there is also an increased awareness and commitment to solving the problem. The year 2002 was the turning point for the Albania mine action programme, and 2003 will be crucial. Albania can now set the pace in the region on issues such as stockpile destruction. The focus this year will be on accurately determining the extent of the mine and UXO problem and initiating the transition strategy to realise the strategic objective of making Albania free from mines and UXO by 2005.

Contact Information

Jab Swart
CTA, Albanian Mine Action Programme
UNDP Albania
Dëshmorët e 4 Shkurtit street, no. 35
Tirana, Albania
Tel: +355692094627
E-mail: jab.swart@undp.org