As an organisation specialising in mine action, the association HAMAP-Humanitaire supports local and displaced people in North East Syria, working to prevent the risks linked to explosive ordnance and to make places of life safe again after armed conflict. Although the fighting has ceased in the city of Raqqa and its surroundings, the threat of explosive ordnance of every kind remains and prevents people from returning and towns and infrastructure from being rebuilt. The resources given to humanitarian aid are regularly held back by difficulties in reaching, moving through and working in places suspected of being dangerous.
HAMAP-Humanitaire provides the population and humanitarian aid organisations with two awareness and non-technical survey teams to mark out areas suspected of being dangerous, alongside two clearance teams to clear the marked areas and make it possible for people to take these places back. Today HAMAP-Humanitaire is continuing its commitment by developing two specialisations:
- Training in clearance in hazardous and confined environments, to make safe the buildings destroyed by bombing, as well as tunnels and wells
- Training in underwater clearance, to make irrigation canals safe and to clear the Euphrates, which poses an imminent danger to access to water and to local people, fishermen and children in particular
In four years, HAMAP's clearance teams have achieved the following results:
- 3,080,000 m² of cleared land handed back
- More than 10,000 explosive devices lifted and destroyed
- Nearly 1,000 risk education sessions delivered
HAMAP-Humanitaire works to make its activities last, by strengthening the technical skills of local teams trained and coached by international experts.
The project was carried out with the support of:
