Locations
Mine action and debris removal
Clearing the path for recovery
When explosives are used in populated areas, 90 percent of casualties are civilians.
Even after the fighting stops, unexploded ordnance continues to harm communities for years. Civilians, aid workers and construction teams all face danger.
That is why clearance comes first. UNDP teams work with national authorities to make areas safe before rebuilding begins. Clearing hazards saves lives, restores trust in public services, and speeds recovery.
Clearing Rubble, Rebuilding Lives
Debris removal also restores a sense of purpose and ownership to communities by creating jobs and laying the foundation for recovery. Economically, it pays off: every $1 spent on mine action can generate up to $7 in social and economic returns. Most importantly, it allows children to return to school, businesses to reopen, and families to move safely through their neighbourhoods.
Demolition of a destroyed kindergarten in Makariv, Kyiv region.
Back to Syria
Syrians Bilal, Abdel Hamid, and Nour were displaced in Lebanon. Today, they are back in Syria, clearing debris and supporting public health projects in their home city of Homs, with support from Japan.
Coming back was not just a decision,” says Nour, 22, studying French literature. “It was a choice between continuing a life of displacement or helping rebuild something better.”
Bilal, an engineering student, says: “Every day we clear rubble. It is like helping the city breathe again.”
The Homs project spans Rural Damascus, Tartous, Ar-Raqqa, and Hama. It links environmental recovery with economic revival, restoring services, improving daily life, and supporting returnees.
Yet progress is underway. UNDP addressed the critical need for mine action in Ukraine, returning to productive use 23.9 million m² of land through non-technical surveys, technical surveys, and clearance operations, enabling the resumption of agricultural, residential, and economic activities in previously hazardous areas. Women are increasingly at the forefront, like Oleksandra Yevdokimova, a former logistician turned volunteer deminer.
The work continues, one square metre at a time, as people transform minefields back into cornfields. Their efforts represent more than just clearing explosive remnants: they are restoring livelihoods and ensuring Ukraine’s fertile soil can once again nourish the world.
UNDP’s work on mine action in Ukraine is generously supported by Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Republic of Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
