Mine action has tended to develop on a national basis. However, the experience of South-Eastern Europe has shown that a broader, regional approach can bring greater effectiveness and efficiency to mine action projects and programmes.

The main achievements of this regional approach have been to lower costs for demining (especially through international competitive bidding) while seeking to promote a high quality of work, in particular through the quality management processes of the International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF). The ITF also believes that its work has improved donor strategies for the region as well as priority setting for mine action operations.