Africa-Press – Angola. 1,872 unexploded explosive devices were removed and destroyed this year in Huambo province by the National Demining Institute (INAD), against 156 in 2021.
Upon confirming the fact, the interim director of INAD in this region, Castro Kapanda, told ANGOP that the increase in the number of devices removed and destroyed was the result of awareness-raising actions carried out among the population, with a focus on denouncing any suspicious object, both in communities, such as in agricultural fields.
The official said that three people died and 13 others suffered serious injuries as a result of mine accidents that occurred this year in the municipalities of Caála, Chicala-Cholohanga and Huambo.
He recalled that in 2021 seven such accidents had been reported, with four dead and 21 seriously injured.
According to the official, between January and the present date, INAD and partners cleared 122 thousand square meters of surface, with the removal of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines, in areas transformed into agricultural fields and implementation of projects with socio-economic impact.
Meanwhile, 23,231 people, including children and adults, were made aware of the risks of mines, in addition to the collection of 1,818 different types of ammunition.
With an area of 35,771 square kilometers, which make up 11 municipalities, 37 communes and 3,387 villages, the province of Huambo, home to over two million 600,000 inhabitants, has already been considered one of the regions of the country with the most suspicious areas of mines, due to the armed conflict.
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