India-backed project clears nearly 198,000 sq m of mine-contaminated land in Cambodia

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Phnom Penh: Nearly 198,000 square metres of mine-contaminated land in Cambodia's Koh Kong province has been cleared and handed over to the local community under an India-backed project, benefiting around 134 families, according to authorities and media reports.

The land in Kaoh Pao village was handed over to residents, with Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy in Phnom Penh, Tanu Priya, joining Cambodian officials at the ceremony, the embassy said in a post on X on Thursday.


Large swathes of land in Cambodia require demining because decades of war and conflict have left large parts of the country contaminated with landmines and unexploded ordnance. These remnants continue to threaten communities and restrict access to land used for farming, housing and development.

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The 197,810-square-metre area was cleared under India's Quick Impact Project (QIP) scheme under the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, The Phnom Penh Post reported on Saturday.

The Mekong-Ganga Cooperation is a regional framework involving India and five Southeast Asian countries - Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam - to promote cooperation in areas including connectivity, trade, education, agriculture and culture.

The ceremony on Thursday was attended by Tep Kallyan, Deputy Secretary General of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority, and Y Nearynet, Deputy Governor of Koh Kong province, the Khmer Times newspaper reported on Sunday.

The cleared land will provide residents with safe access for farming, housing, livelihoods and other socio-economic activities, the report said.

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India has been a longstanding partner in Cambodia's humanitarian demining efforts, supporting the country's mine action programme since the early 1990s through technical assistance, capacity building, demining equipment, mine detection dogs, assistance to landmine victims and grants for humanitarian demining projects, according to the embassy.