Joined the Cluster Coordination Meeting in the Mine Action Sector

The event brought together more than 100 representatives of government institutions, international organizations, mine action operators, and partner projects. Participants included representatives of the Secretariat of the National Mine Action Authority, the Ministry of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the State Special Transport Service, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP Ukraine), international technical assistance projects, mine action operators, as well as international governmental and non-governmental organizations.

During the cluster meeting, participants discussed key sectoral topics: updates from the MA Area of Responsibility (MA AoR), mine action standardization, stigma surrounding persons with disabilities and individuals affected by explosive ordnance, the use of VR technologies for deminer training, the role of women in mine action, support for information management within Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) initiatives, outcomes of the UMAC2025 conference, professional training and retraining of veterans, the work of cluster working groups, the development of a unified explosive ordnance database, and environmental aspects of humanitarian demining.

A UDS representative raised an important question regarding the availability of grant programs aimed at improving working conditions and adapting workplaces for combat veterans, persons with disabilities, and women involved in humanitarian demining. This topic is particularly relevant for our company, as more than 40 UDS employees are combat veterans, and over 30% of our staff are women. During the discussion, it became clear that information about such grant opportunities was currently unavailable among the participants.