© Nicolas Axelrod / Handicap International, January 2013.
Deminer working to clear land in Bangyang village, Savannakhet province, Lao PDR.

Under Article 6 of the Convention on Cluster Munitions, each State Party “has the right to seek and receive assistance” to ensure implementation of the convention’s obligations, including those to destroy stockpiled cluster munitions within eight years, to clear areas contaminated by cluster munition remnants within 10 years, and to provide victim assistance. States Parties “in a position to do so” are obligated to provide technical, material, and financial assistance to implement these measures.

From a survey of donor activities by 32 governments and the European Union (EU), the Monitor has verified that 28 states,^[1] the EU, and UNDP reported supporting mine action programs in the 26 states and three other areas affected by cluster munition remnants, including countries recognized as among the most affected by cluster munitions: Cambodia, Lao PDR, Iraq, Lebanon, and Vietnam.^[2]

Donor states designate very few of their funded projects as activities related only to cluster munitions, complicating the effort to report precisely the amount of funding related to the convention.^[3] Some donors report funding for activities related to cluster munitions even though the expenditure was also used for clearance of mines or unexploded ordnance.^[4] Victim assistance funding is also difficult to trace because the activities encompass multiple government agencies and programs that benefit people who are not cluster munition casualties.

States Parties have stated their approach to cluster munition funding at meetings associated with the Convention on Cluster Munitions. At the intersessional meetings in April 2012, Norway expressed caution against focusing too narrowly on financial support for the implementation of the convention as opposed to “important non-fiscal aspects” of support. Norway said an overemphasis on fiscal matters could give a “false picture” of actual funding levels.^[5] Australia has stated that “it is difficult, in many circumstances, to distinguish between the provision and utilisation of our funding for work in relation to mines, cluster munitions and other explosive remnants of war.”^[6] Also, Sweden has reported that it contributed to UNICEF’s Global Armed Violence Reduction Programme in 2012 as part of its focus on cluster munitions, even though UNICEF’s program encompasses all types of arms and weapons.^[7]

Given these factors, approximately 15% (US$70.2 million) of all international cooperation for mine action in 2012 can be identified as used for clearance, advocacy, and victim assistance activities pertaining to cluster munitions.^[8]

Contributions and Recipients

The Monitor identified 18 states, the EU, and UNDP as contributors of $66.6 million to activities in 2012 pertaining to cluster munition clearance in 12 countries and two other areas. All 12 countries and the two other areas also have landmine contamination and received funding for clearing landmines. Some states, like Cambodia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and South Sudan, received significant funding in support of their mine action programs, of which only a partial amount was specifically targeted to cluster munition clearance.

In addition to the $66.6 million for clearance, another $3.6 million was allocated for advocacy and victim assistance.

Thirteen States Parties and five non-signatories supported projects directly linked to activities related to cluster munitions.

Donors by convention status

The recipients include seven States Parties and signatories to the Convention on Cluster Munitions: Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Croatia, DRC, Iraq, Lao PDR, Lebanon, and Mauritania; as well as five non-signatories: Cambodia, Serbia, South Sudan, Vietnam, and Yemen; and two other areas: Nagorno-Karabakh and Western Sahara.

All recorded contributions were made through international and national NGOs, UN agencies, the Voluntary Trust Fund for Assistance in Mine Action (UN VTF), and the ITF Enhancing Human Security (formerly International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance). No bilateral or direct contributions were reported.

Lao PDR and Lebanon

Lao PDR and Lebanon are the two states most affected by cluster munitions. Combined, they received $54 million for activities pertaining to cluster munitions in 2012, bolstered by Japan’s $11 million contribution to the government of Lao PDR for equipment. The $54 million represents 81% of funding allocated for clearance and support for some core costs at the national mine action offices.

Lebanon had 15 different donors, including funding from Saudi Arabia through the UN VTF and from Austria and South Korea through the ITF.^[9]

Other recipients

Norway and Switzerland contributed to advocacy efforts related to the Convention on Cluster Munitions that included sponsorship support to the Third Meeting of States Parties, Cluster Munition Coalition, Handicap International, and Norwegian People’s Aid.^[10]

Australia, Austria, Finland, Germany, and the US contributed $1.56 million to victim assistance programs in Lao PDR and Lebanon that could readily be considered primarily cluster munition-oriented. Those donors and others (including Canada, the Netherlands, and Norway) contributed funds to victim assistance in BiH, Iraq, South Sudan, and Vietnam.^[11] However, there were many other victim assistance projects funded in cluster munition-affected Afghanistan, BiH, Cambodia, Kosovo, Serbia, South Sudan, and Vietnam in 2012 that were not identified as such by donors.