A landmine clearance charity will be given £7 million to continue its “life-saving” work in Ukraine and Afghanistan.
The UK Government cash for the Hazardous Area Life-support Organisation (Halo) Trust will enable the charity to make land safe for agriculture in Ukraine, and to restore basic services affected by the threat of explosives in Afghanistan.
Development minister Anneliese Dodds also announced an additional £250,000 for one Halo project, which aims to dispose of 165 tons of unusable, unsafe ammunition and explosives from Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, Africa.
The minister visited the Halo base in Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway, on Wednesday where she saw how the organisation helps other countries and creates jobs in the local area.
It comes after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer visited Kyiv, Ukraine, last week where he signed the UK-Ukraine 100 Year Partnership, which aims to help the country rebuild after the Russian invasion.
On her visit, Ms Dodds discussed how she intends to extend the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s current contracts with Halo to deliver mine action in Afghanistan and Ukraine by a further year from April 2025 to the end of March 2026, providing £4.3 million for work in Ukraine and £3 million for action in Afghanistan.
🎥 "It's been so exciting to see HALO's work, which is changing lives right around the world."
Thank you to International Development Minister @AnnelieseDodds for visiting our Scottish HQ today, as @FCDOGovUK are set to to provide £7m in new funding for our life-saving our work. pic.twitter.com/wXALZ4qm0l
— The HALO Trust (@TheHALOTrust) January 22, 2025
Ms Dodds said: “No-one should have to live in fear of being killed or maimed by one wrong step.
“These deadly devices sow fear and destruction for decades and organisations like the Halo Trust do a vital job in clearing mines.
“I’m proud to be in Scotland to announce this support for the Halo Trust to continue its life-saving work removing deadly devices from some of the most hazardous parts of the world.
“Halo is a world leader in demining and the UK Government is committed to helping communities torn apart by conflict to rebuild their lives, including by freeing up land so it can be farmed and helping people to return safely to their communities.
“The companies working with Halo are making a real contribution to some of the most vulnerable communities on earth – and in doing so are creating jobs and driving growth in Scotland, which I’m pleased to support as part of the Government’s Plan for Change.”
The minister spoke with a number of women who work in Syria and Ukraine.
She said: “I was struck by the increasingly important contribution that female deminers are making in a traditionally male-dominated sector.”
Having launched the Global Mine Action Programme (GMAP) in 2014, the UK Government said more than 693 million square metres of mines around the world have been cleared by the Halo Trust and similar organisations.
Around 5.4 million people have also been educated on the danger of such explosives, helping them to avoid risk areas and what to do if they discover any.
GMAP operates in Afghanistan, Angola, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Ukraine, and Zimbabwe.
Since its establishment in 1988, Halo has cleared two million mines and other explosive ordnance – saving an estimated two million lives and giving more than 10 million people safer access to schools, health clinics and farming land.
Ruth Jackson, chief strategy officer at the Halo Trust, said: “There can be no genuine recovery from conflict until all deadly unexploded mines and munitions are safely cleared.
“This vital UK Government funding would make a huge difference to tens of thousands of people at risk from the dangerous levels of explosive contamination that litter where they work, live, study, and play.
“Until the last landmine is out of the ground and the last bomb defused, large numbers of people will continue to live in fear.
“We remain dedicated to continuing our life-saving work.”
