Note: CHA = confirmed hazardous area; SHA = suspected hazardous area; ERW = explosive remnants of war; UXO = unexploded ordnance.

Contamination

In October 2017, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia continued to report that a total of 314 confirmed and suspected hazardous areas remained to be addressed across six regions of the country, including 45 CHAs covering a total area of just under 7.2km², along with 269 SHAs with a size of nearly 1,186km², of which it expected about only about 2–3% would contain mines.[1] On this basis, Ethiopia reported that in order to declare compliance with its Article 5 obligations, it expected a total of close to 1,162km² will be released by survey and up to 31km² will be released through clearance.[2]

However, since 2015, Ethiopia’s reporting on the number and size of areas suspected or confirmed to be mined has been plagued with inconsistencies, including the figures contained within its 2015 Article 5 extension request, its response to subsequent requests for clarification, statements at Mine Ban Treaty meetings, and its last Article 7 transparency report on the status of contamination as of 30 April 2017.

It appears that Ethiopia’s updated 2017–2020 workplan attempts to clarify conflicting past estimates of remaining contamination by presenting one consistent set of figures throughout the document regarding the number and size of the suspected and confirmed hazardous areas remaining to be addressed as of October 2017, as set out in the table below.[3] This estimate is reportedly based on re-survey efforts in 2012 following an inflated Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) concluded in 2004.[4]

As of October 2017, CHAs and SHAs continued to remain across six regions (Afar, Benishangul, Gambela, Oromia, Somali, and Tigray), as set out in the table below. The Somali region is believed to be by far the most heavily affected, followed by the Afar region; however, Ethiopia’s updated 2017–2020 workplan notes that the full extent of contamination “is not yet fully known, especially in the Somali region as some communities remain inaccessible due to poor infrastructure conditions” near to the border with Somalia.[5]

CHAs and SHAs by region (at October 2017)[6]

Ethiopia has also noted that estimates of contamination do not include the area along the Ethiopia-Eritrea confrontation line where no survey has been carried out and the border has not been demarcated. The area was previously under the control of the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE). When asked what efforts it had made to address this contamination, Ethiopia reported in 2015 that it had carried out clearance behind its own defensive lines, but it was not possible to enter or clear the area between the two countries’ defensive lines due to security concerns, and clearance would have to wait until the demarcation has been completed.[7]

Ethiopia’s mine problem is a result of internal and international armed conflicts dating back to 1935, including the Italian occupation and subsequent East Africa campaigns (1935–1941), a border war with Sudan (1980), the Ogaden war with Somalia (1997–1998), internal conflict (1974–2000), and the Ethiopian-Eritrean war (1998–2000).

Mines and ERW are reported to continue to cause socio-economic harm, including through: denying access to agricultural and pasture land, contributing to food insecurity and serious economic hardship for certain communities; blocking access to water for communities and particularly for nomadic pastoralists; and blocking secondary and tertiary roads important to local communities.[8] In its updated 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia stated that the actual and perceived threat of mines and ERW continued to obstruct humanitarian activities, hinder agriculture, development, and construction efforts, and prevent the safe resettlement of displaced populations.[9]

Program Management

In 2001, following the end of the conflict with Eritrea, Ethiopia’s Council of Ministers established EMAO as an autonomous civilian body responsible for mine clearance and mine risk education.[10] EMAO developed its operational capacities effectively with technical assistance from Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).[11] In 2011, however, EMAO’s governing board decided that the Ministry of Defense was better suited to clear the remaining mines because Ethiopia had made significant progress in meeting its Mine Ban Treaty clearance obligations and the remaining threat did not warrant a structure and organization the size of EMAO. It has further asserted on numerous occasions that a civilian entity such as EMAO would have difficulty accessing the unstable Somali region.[12]

In response to the decision to close EMAO and transfer demining responsibility to the army’s Combat Engineers Division, NPA ended its direct funding support[13] and had completed the transfer of its remaining 49 mine detection dogs (MDDs) to EMAO and the federal police by the end of April 2012.[14] The Combat Engineers Division took over management of the MDD Training Centre at Entoto where it conducted training in demining in early 2012.

Strategic planning

The transition of EMAO to the Ministry of National Defense appeared to be in limbo until September 2015, when Ethiopia reported that oversight of national mine action activities had been re-established as “one Independent Mine Action Office” under the Combat Engineers Main Department.[15] In its updated 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia confirmed that this “autonomous legal entity” had been re-named the Ethiopian Mine Action Office (EMAO), and was responsible for survey, clearance, and mine risk education activities, accountable to the Ministry of National Defense’s Engineering Main Department (MoND-EMD). The workplan includes an organigram of the department, which is structured around a number of sub-departments, including for risk education, information management, quality assurance, training, and operations, under which demining companies, technical survey and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams, and a mechanical demining team are to report.[16]

However, since the re-establishment of the national mine action office was announced in 2015, Ethiopia has continued to report that resource constraints were impeding the construction of the Demining Training Center started by the former EMAO, and that demining equipment was nearing the end of its operational life.[17]

Legislation and standards

In the updated 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia stated that in 2017, its National Mine Action Standards (NMAS) would be “developed and updated” and that standing operating procedures (SOPs) for mine clearance and land release would be updated according to the current International Mine Action Standards (IMAS). It had previously reported that this would happen in 2015, according to its extension request targets.[18]

Quality management

Ethiopia has reported that operations have been “employing overall quality management including quality assurance and quality control efforts to ensure that operations are in accordance with NMAS and IMAS.”[19] In its 2017–2020 workplan, it is stipulated that quality assurance reports on operations will be submitted on a weekly basis.[20]

Information management

Ethiopia also reported that, prior to 2015, EMAO had installed and customized a new version of the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) database and had been working on capacity development to upgrade data processing. However, it stated that database challenges remained and until issues with the IMSMA system were resolved, the National Defense Force would “continue using alternative data processing packages together with IMSMA for planning, reporting, and analysis.” In its 2015 extension request and 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia requested technical advisory and training support to make the IMSMA database fully functional.[21] In June and October 2017, Ethiopia reiterated its appeals for assistance for resources and skills training for personnel to operate the IMSMA database and for strategic planning projects.[22]

Operators

Under its extension request, Ethiopia stated that from 1 December 2015 to the end of May 2020, it would deploy four demining companies and four survey and rapid-response teams.[23] In its 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia states that these teams were set to be deployed in November 2017.[24] The workplan lists the following capacity to be deployed for the duration of the extension request period: four manual clearance companies, two technical survey and rapid-response teams, two EOD teams, and six ground preparation machines.[25]

In April 2017, Ethiopia reported that using its own resources, 412 personnel attended a basic demining course.[26] The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that it provided demining training for 45 personnel from the Combat Engineering Division in 2017, as a follow-up to training conducted in 2016, which it said was intended to strengthen its capacity to clear mined areas. However, it also reported that after their training, a number of the recipients were deployed to peacekeeping support missions abroad. It likewise did not report that any demining had begun.[27]

Land Release

As of October 2017, Ethiopia did not report that any survey or clearance activities had taken place during the year. As stated above, in its updated 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia pledged that four demining teams and four technical survey and rapid-response teams would re-start clearance and survey operations in November 2017, despite having reported previously in its extension request that the teams would be deployed in November 2015.[28]

While no survey or clearance operations took place in 2017, or the previous year, Ethiopia reported that in 2016 on the basis of reports from the local population, 30 items of ordnance had been destroyed by the mine action office: 10 antivehicle mines and 20 items of UXO.[29]

Previously, in April 2014, Ethiopia had informed States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty that in January–November 2013 its rapid-response teams had visited more than 10 ERW-impacted communities in “Amhar, Oromiya, south and Somalia regional states” clearing more than 100,000m² and destroying 10 antipersonnel mines and 176,000 items of UXO.[30] No details were given as to the exact location of the spot tasks. Historically, in 2002–2012, Ethiopia stated that almost 60km² of mined areas were cleared while nearly 1,200km² of SHAs were released by technical survey, with the destruction of 9,260 antipersonnel mines, 1,466 antivehicle mines, and 197,985 items of UXO.[31]

Article 5 Compliance

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty (and in accordance with a five-year extension granted by States Parties in 2015) Ethiopia is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 June 2020. It is not on track to meet this deadline.

Ethiopia’s original Article 5 deadline expired on 1 June 2015. In March 2015, Ethiopia submitted a request for an extension of five years until 1 June 2020 to complete survey and clearance of all remaining mined areas.[32] It failed, however, to submit an extension request with sufficient time to allow States Parties to consider extending the deadline prior to its expiry, thus placing Ethiopia in violation of the convention until the approval of the late request by the Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties on 4 December 2015.

Ethiopia has listed the following reasons for its inability to comply with its initial 2015 Article 5 deadline: insecurity in and around some mined areas; the lack of basic social services and infrastructure necessary for operations in rural areas; continuous redeployment of demining teams in scattered mined areas; lack of funding; the identification of additional hazardous areas; climate (such as a three-month rainy season); and a lack of precise information on the number and location of mined areas.[33]

Previously, in 2010, Ethiopia said it would clear all mines by 2013 (two years ahead of its deadline) if sufficient funding were available.[34] In March 2013, however, following the closure of EMAO and transfer of responsibility for mine action to the Ministry of Defense, Ethiopia reported it was unlikely to meet its Article 5 deadline due to secondment of demining units to Sudan, and gaps in training, equipment, and funding.[35]

In its updated 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia continued to report that funding was its primary concern. However, it also raised concerns that a lack of capacity, lack of technical support, population movements, high metallic content of soil in hazardous areas, and heavy rainy seasons could delay clearance progress. It stated Ethiopia’s hope that international NGOs would provide technical support, materials, and funding to assist with clearance.[36]

The 2017–2020 workplan states that it is “realistic” that all 314 areas can be addressed using “all available demining assets in Ethiopia” within the extension time period, while also stating that donor funding will enable it “successfully to complete the clearance of contaminated areas from land mines and fulfil the legal obligations of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention by 2020.”[37]

According to the workplan, the following milestones will be met:

• 2017: demining course training, establishment of rapid response teams (RRT) and EOD teams; 26.9km² released through non-technical and technical survey and clearance of over 2.8km² in Afar, Benishangul, Somali, and Tigray regions;
• 2018: address over 518.5km² through non-technical and technical survey by concluding survey of Afar, Gambela, Oromia, Afar, and Benishangul regions, along with ongoing survey in Somali region, and the clearance of just under 8km²;
• 2019: complete clearance of Gambela region and conclude survey in Somali region, addressing 647.8km² through non-technical and technical survey and clearing nearly 10.5km²;
• 2020: continue clearance in Somali region with over 9.6km² released by clearance, and “submit by April 2020 an updated development to the [Mine Ban Treaty] States Parties based on more precise information gathered through operations.”[38]

Ethiopia has been asked by Mine Ban Treaty States Parties on numerous occasions to clarify its estimates of contamination and to present accurate information on the number and estimated size of CHAs and SHAs.[39] It is not possible to definitively reconcile information reported in Ethiopia’s updated 2017–2020 workplan with statements made in 2017 on its progress in implementing its Article 5 obligations, or information provided in its 2015 extension request, along with other previous reports. Additionally, Ethiopia did not report on progress to meet the projected milestones contained in its extension request for 2015–2017, nor it does not appear that any progress to meet these targets was actually made.

In April 2017, for the first time since 2012, Ethiopia submitted an updated Article 7 report. However, the quality of Ethiopia’s reporting on its mine action activities in recent years has been inconsistent and poor. Its March 2015 extension request is riddled with inconsistent figures and mathematical errors, and the Article 7 report does not contain precise information on the location and size of contaminated areas. Ethiopia subsequently failed to submit the updated Article 7 report, which was due by April 2018.

With no functioning mine action program as of the end of 2017, and little progress reported in clearance since September 2011, Ethiopia is unlikely to meet its future extension request plan. The lack of progress since the submission of its extension request in 2015, combined with a lack of any apparent increase in capacity, makes it increasingly difficult to see how Ethiopia will complete clearance by June 2020.

Mine clearance in 2013–2017[40]

In its 2017–2020 workplan, Ethiopia claimed that US$46.3 million is required to complete clearance of antipersonnel mine contamination by its 2020 deadline, which it reported includes all associated costs to establish a national capacity to address residual mine and ERW contamination.[41] This is despite the previously forecast total of US$37 million required to complete clearance by June 2020 as reported in its 2015 extension request, and a further seemingly inexplicable increase from the US$10 million that EMAO reported was required to clear all remaining areas by 2012.[42] According to the 2017–2020 workplan, the government of Ethiopia will contribute 7% of the $46.3 million required, or approximately $3.2 million to cover the mine action program’s administrative costs.[43]

Ethiopia has called on a number of occasions since 2015 for technical and financial support from international NGOs to meet its mine clearance obligations.[44] In June 2017, it requested assistance and training in information management and planning, stating it faced a shortage of resources and skilled manpower.[45] It reiterated these requests in its 2017–2020 workplan, again stating that Ethiopia would welcome international support and technical assistance.[46]

The Monitor acknowledges the contributions of the Mine Action Review (www.mineactionreview.org), which has conducted the primary mine action research in 2018 and shared all its country-level landmine reports (from“Clearing the Mines 2018”) and country-level cluster munition reports (from “Clearing Cluster Munition Remnants 2018”) with the Monitor. The Monitor is responsible for the findings presented online and in its print publications.