Humanitarian De-mining

Abstract

The Humanitarian Demining Research and Development (HD R&D) Program is overseen by the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Stability and Humanitarian Affairs (SHA) within the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low – Intensity Conflict (SO/LIC) in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (OUSD) for Policy. The HD R&D Program coordinates with SHA and the with Humanitarian Mine Action (HMA) programs of the Geographical Combatant Commands (CCMD) to develop, demonstrate and validate cost-effective technologies for use in humanitarian demining via OCONUS operational field evaluations. The HD R&D Program’s low-cost and highly effective technology reduces landmine and UXO threat to the local population and US forces, and bolsters host nations’ mine action capacity while improving DoD’s visibility and access, generating long-term positive perceptions of DoD and the USG, and fostering collaborative relationships with host nation governments. The program directly supports the National Defense Strategy through ensuring common domains remain open and free. The HD R&D Program crafts a research and development plan based on CCMDs’ security cooperation and theater campaign plan objectives to advance the state-of-the-art of demining technology and evaluate prototype technology utilizing host nation humanitarian demining operations partners. Continuous operations test data against live mines/UXO around the world is unavailable to any other DoD organization. Such data informs HD R&D Program investment decisions and is leveraged by U.S. military countermine R&D programs to improve U.S. forces’ technology. In addition, the program conducts mine and UXO detector training at the Humanitarian Demining Training Center (HDTC) in support of mil-to-mil training and partnerships. Since 1995 the program has fielded technologies for 227 evaluations in 42 countries, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Vietnam, Cambodia, Angola and Zimbabwe. The program’s technologies have cleared 66.8 million square meters of the world’s toughest minefields, and found or destroyed 205,474 mines and UXO. New technology requirements and areas of emphasis are identified and validated at a biennial Requirements Workshop and a biennial UXO Working Group Meeting held by OASD SO/LIC. The meetings involve representatives from Department of State (DOS), CCMD Humanitarian Mine Action programs, international mine action organizations and mine-affected nations. The program element’s work fulfills the Department of Defense’s strategic guidance to address instability and reduce the demand for significant US force commitments to stability operations; with DODI 3000.05 to foster security, economic security and development, and build indigenous capacity; and with § 407 and CJCSI 3207.01C to reduce the social, economic and environmental impact of landmines and unexploded ordnance.

Document Details

• Document Type: Project
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2021
• Source ID: 920_0603920D8Z_4_0400_PB_2021

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• Defense Acquisition Program Management
• Geochemistry
• Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.