Mine Action Lessons and Challenges: Is Mine Action Making a Difference ... or Avoiding the Question?

Certainly, the international mine action community has learned a great deal over the past 15 years. However, has mine action really made a significant, long‐term difference to the lives of the people it is trying to help? For few things in mine action cause more frustration and misunderstanding among donors, recipient governments and programme managers than the question: what results has the programme achieved? Study after study has decried the fact that, while there are abundant data detailing the number of landmines destroyed, the area of land cleared and the number of people receiving mine awareness training, there are few data allowing an assessment of whether these achievements have enhanced the well‐being of people in mine‐afflicted communities.