Azerbaijan clears 64,000 hectares of liberated lands of mines

Chairman of the Board of the Mine Action Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (ANAMA) Vugar Suleymanov has said that to date, 64,000 hectares of the liberated Azerbaijani lands have been cleared of mines.

Suleymanov made these remarks at a conference on demining organised jointly with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Shusha, Report informs.

The chairman noted that 282 Azerbaijanis suffered as a result of the explosion of mines planted by Armenia, 46 of whom died.

He said that in general, over 28,000 anti-personnel mines and over 39,000 unexploded ordnance have been revealed during the demining process.

Suleymanov noted ANAMA's interest in cooperation with UNDP.

"The document that we will sign today will help improve the quality of our work," he added.

The chairman also noted the importance of gender in the demining process.

He said that the participation of women in the demining process and the creation of the first women's demining teams in Azerbaijan will contribute to the promotion of gender inclusiveness.

Suleymanov also called on the international community and organisations to assist the demining process in Azerbaijan.