Mine action in Southern Africa: Instrument of development?

This report chapter provides a set of recommendations for mine-affected countries and donors in Southern Africa to ensure sustainable commitment, national capacity building, and the integration of mine action into broader development strategies.

• Successful national mine action programs require transparent, continuous communication and formal frameworks for regular dialogue between governments, donors, and affected communities to avoid the need for national actors to repeatedly 'reinvent the wheel' due to the rotation of foreign experts.
• National governments must demonstrate political commitment beyond the ratification of the Ottawa Convention, including more proactive participation in the convention's meetings to ensure donors maintain focus on the region.
• National capacity building should extend beyond technical training to empower citizens to make decisions regarding the long-term nature of the mine problem and the economic distribution of resources.
• Mine action is frequently miscategorized by donors as a 'special initiative' rather than a 'main activity' within Overseas Development Aid (ODA) budgets, which limits its integration into broader development goals.
• Donors often rely on technical data and field experts, failing to evaluate the socio-economic impact of mine action at the community level, which limits the effectiveness of interventions.
• There is a significant need to utilize local and regional expertise, such as the mine-resistant vehicle technology in the SADC region and training provided by the Institute of Military Engineers of Southern Africa (IMEESA), to avoid the failure of foreign interventions using inappropriate techniques.
• The Southern African Development Community (SADC) should enhance its regional role by providing political guidance and more prominently representing the region's mine problems in international forums.
• Lessons from Mozambique, specifically the work of the National Demining Institute (IND) and the Accelerated Demining Programme (ADP), could be adapted and transferred to Angola due to shared colonial heritage and language.

APA

Grobbelaar, N. (n.d.). Mine action in Southern Africa: Instrument of development? South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Mine_Action_Chptr5_Port.pdf

Chicago

Grobbelaar, Neuma. Mine action in Southern Africa: Instrument of development? South African Institute of International Affairs, n.d. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Mine_Action_Chptr5_Port.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Grobbelaar |first1=Neuma |title=Mine action in Southern Africa: Instrument of development? |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Mine_Action_Chptr5_Port.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{grobbelaarndmine, author = {Grobbelaar, Neuma}, title = {{Mine action in Southern Africa: Instrument of development?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/Mine_Action_Chptr5_Port.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }