(KPL) The handover ceremony of the staff accommodation and facilities for the unexploded ordnance (UXO) Lao Units in Xiengkhouang worth 211,187 USD was held on November 10, in Xiengkhouang province.

The ceremony were attend by Mr. Phoxay Khaykhamphithoune, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Padeumphone Sonthany, Vice Minister of Labor and Social Welfare, Mr Sivilay Sengchaleun, Vice Governor of Xiengkhouang , Ambassador Jonathan Kings, New Zealand Ambassador to the Lao PDR, the Embassies of Canada, Ireland, Japan, Luxemburg, the Republic of Korea and the United States of America and relevant officials.

Mr. Padeumphone has expressed thanks for Government of New Zealand which provided assistant and support to Laos in recent years, considering as great contribution to development and poverty reduction in Laos.

Ambassador Jonathan Kings, New Zealand Ambassador to the Lao PDR

Mr Kings has congratulated the government of the Lao PDR, particularly the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, for their continuous efforts to fulfill the obligations under the Convention on Cluster Munitions and to overcome the legacies of the Indochina conflict that hinder its sustainable human development.

These new facilities were built over the past 7 months with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Laos and a generous financial contribution of the Government of New Zealand, a long-time partner of UNDP and of UXO clearance in Xiengkhouang Province, which it has supported without interruption since 2014.

As of last month, with New Zealand’s support, more than 3,482 hectares – the equivalent of approximately 4,900 soccer fields – have been cleared in this province, which has the sad record of having the highest density of UXO contamination in the Lao PDR.

The clearance operators, UXO Lao and Unit 58, the humanitarian demining team of the Lao People’s Army, and the National Regulatory Authority, the NRA, who are the forefront of Lao PDR’s efforts to achieve SDG 18 – Lives safe from UXO – and reach the targets set out in the national strategic plan, Safe Path Forward III, 2021-2030.

In 2022, a total of 16 UXO-related accidents were recorded, in which 15 people were injured and five people died. Since the beginning of this year, there have been 15 UXO accident, in which 21 people were injured and 8 people died children represent 62% of these casualties (18 out of 29).

Even though the number of victims is falling, UXO clearance remains a critical priority. The presence of unexploded cluster munitions and UXO creates a vast and continuing burden which falls mainly on the rural population and the environment of the Lao PDR. It makes everyday activities risky. It hinders children from playing safely outside, it constrains agricultural expansion, disrupts forest management and the safe use of land.

KPL