Charities call for more global action on International Day for Mine Awareness

As the world marks International Day of Mine Awareness, charities have issued a renewed call for more global action.

Mines, explosive remnants of war, and improvised explosive devices continue to cause death and injury, especially in situations of armed conflict, according to the United Nations.

On average, one person is killed or injured by such an explosive device every hour, and the UN says children are often the victims.

It's estimated that as many as 10 million landmines could be spread across some 64 countries around the world, and that between two and five million new landmines are laid each year.

While Africa is the continent most severely affected by landmines, Europe is also hugely affected, with landmines still presenting a problem from conflicts in countries like Azerbaijan and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Azerbaijan is one of the world's most landmine-affected countries. After decades of conflict, the government is actively conducting a programme to counter landmines, raise awareness, and protect the population.

"The rapid clearance of these mines and the reconstruction and restoration of those areas is a time-consuming issue," says Adil Aslanov, Head of the Methodology and Training Department of the Mine Action Agency, Azerbaijan.

"Therefore, the scale of ANAMA's demining operations has significantly expanded. And within the framework of demining operations, we first carried out targeted mine clearance operations to develop communication lines, roads, water sources, and all other infrastructure in those areas."

Ukraine is also particularly badly affected, with around a third of its territory estimated to be mined.

As faltering peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow stumble along, removing the estimated two million landmines, as well as the hundreds of thousands of unexploded rockets, missiles, mortars, and grenades, will be crucial to guaranteeing future security in Ukraine.