More than half a century after the war, millions of unexploded bombs and mines remain buried underground, threatening lives and hindering development in many localities.

Deputy Defence Minister Hoang Xuan Chien called for more support from the UN Development Programme (UNDP) for Vietnam in overcoming post-war bombs, mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) consequences and UN peacekeeping, during a meeting with Kanni Wignaraja, UN Assistant Secretary General, Deputy Regional Director and Director for the Asia-Pacific at UNDP, in Hanoi on July 28.

Vietnam and the US have been working together for a number of decades already to clear away unexploded ordnance (UXO) left over from the war, which has proven to be fruitful, especially in central Quang Tri province - the area in Vietnam most contaminated by UXO.

A seminar was held in the central province of Quang Tri on June 14 to review activities to clear unexploded ordnances (UXO) left over by the war for the 2016 – 2020 period.

The central province of Quang Tri had cleared more than 9,100 ha of land contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXO) as of mid-April, helping ensure safety for residents and promoting socio-economic development.

As many as 2,000 people were killed by post-war landmines between 2010 and 2014, while an estimated 6.1 million hectares accounting for more than 21 percent of Vietnam’s land remains contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXO).

The central province of Binh Dinh will spend 392 billion VND (17.2 million USD) on searching for unexploded ordnance (UXO) in 2016 – 2020, according to Nguyen Van Hung, Head of Engineering Division of the provincial Military Command.

The Vietnam Bomb and Mine Action Support Association (VBMASA) vows to exert all efforts to minimise impacts of post-war unexploded ordnances (UXOs).