SUDAN: National Demining Authority Opens

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 000745

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR AF/SPG AND PM/WRA - M MURPHY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV MARR KHDP UN SU
SUBJECT: SUDAN: National Demining Authority Opens

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Summary
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1. (U) Sudan's Mine Action Authority opened with some
fanfare in Khartoum on March 7. President Bashir, First VP
Kiir, Defense Minister Hussein, and Humanitarian Affairs
Minister Manibe all spoke to the crowd of 250 invited
guests. The MNAA will oversee demining and ordnance
disposal operations in both northern and southern Sudan; it
is a joint GNU-UNDP program. End Summary.

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Structure
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2. (U) The Government of Sudan in conjunction with the
United Nations Development Program, established the National
Mine Action Authority (NMAA) in Khartoum on March 7. The
NMAA is composed of the following four components:

a. National Mine Action Committee (NMAC)

b. General Secretariat of the NMAC

c. National Mine Action Center (Based in Khartoum)

d. Regional Mine Action Center in Southern Sudan (Based in
Juba).


3. (U) The NMAC is co-chaired by the Minister of
Humanitarian Affairs and the Minister of Defense, with the
State Minister of Humanitarian Affairs designated as the
Secretary General of the NMAC. The NMAC is composed of

SIPDIS
representatives from 13 ministries of the Government of
National Unity (GONU),two representatives from the
Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS),and one representative
from the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA).

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High Level Interest
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4. (SBU) President Bashir attended the opening session along
with Minister of Defense 1st Lieutenant General Hussein and
Minister of Humanitarian Affairs Manibe. All the speakers
welcomed the establishment of the NMAA and termed its
establishment a milestone in the implementation of the CPA.
Representing SRSG Pronk, Dr Francis Kai Kai highlighted the
need for demining Sudan to be a Sudanese process. President
Bashir, appearing bareheaded in a safari suit, highlighted
the importance of the establishment of the NMAA as "one of
the first fruits of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement
(CPA)," and as a strong indicator of the commitment and
determination of the Republic of the Sudan to address the
landmine contamination problem. Bashir also said the GNU
has included mine action in its national budget for 2006 and
will allocate funds for mine action in the coming years.
First VP Salva Kiir spoke at the closing ceremony, thanking
the UN, the donor community, and all other
organizations/institutions that have assisted and supported
the Sudanese authorities and people in addressing the
landmine contamination problem in the Sudan. Kiir made a
strong appeal to all the UN agencies, the donor community
and all other national and international bodies, to work
closely with NMAA to build Sudanese management and
operations capacities. In addition, he appealed to the
donor community to allocate special funds for building of
local and national mine action capacities.

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Working Session
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5. (U) Attendees were treated to presentations by the
representatives of the NMAC, as well as key UN mine action
agencies, including UNMAS, UNDP, UNICEF, WFP, and UNHCR.
Briefings focused on the magnitude of the landmine
contamination in Sudan, achievements to date, on going
activities/projects, funding situation, the challenges
faced, and their future plans. In addition, the
Commissioner General of the Humanitarian Aid Commission
(HAC) presented highlights of the government vision and
plans for addressing the landmine contamination problems in
the country and priority areas for assistance. The
presentations were followed by a one-hour session of open
discussions and interventions from various ministries,
national and international organizations, UN agencies, and
individuals.


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STEINFELD