Rwanda first landmine-free country

Wednesday, 02 December 2009

Rwanda is to be declared free of landmines - the first country to achieve this status. The announcement is to be made at the Cartagena Summit on a Mine-Free World in Columbia.

Hundreds of people have been killed and horrifically injured by landmines in Rwanda. Landmines were laid between 1990 and 1994 in Rwanda and over the past three years more than over 9,000 have been destroyed by Rwandan soldiers.

Ben Remfrey of the Mines Awareness Trust, which supervised the clearance, says although other countries have had far more mines laid, this is a significant step. "Rwanda has made history by becoming the first country in the world to be officially declared free from landmines," he told the BBC World Service. "Rwanda had a problem, it wasn't huge but it was still significant... and had a big social and economic impact."

For the full story, please visit the BBC.