Mine clearance organization

A mine clearance organization, or demining organization, is an organization involved in the removal of landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) for military, humanitarian, or commercial reasons. Demining includes mine clearance (actual removal and destruction of landmines/UXO from the ground), as well as surveying, mapping and marking of hazardous areas. The broader realm of mine action also includes advocacy, victim assistance, antipersonnel mine stockpile destruction, mine risk education and research. The aim is to clear land so that civilians can return to their homes and their everyday routines without the threat of landmines and unexploded remnants of war (ERW), which include unexploded ordnance and abandoned explosive ordnance. This means that all the mines and ERW affecting the places where ordinary people live must be cleared, and their safety in areas that have been cleared must be guaranteed. Mines are cleared and the areas are verified so that they can say that the land is now safe, and people can use it without worrying about the weapons. After the Second World War, large-scale multinational naval mine clearance operations were carried out by the International Central Mine Clearance Board, and, in northern European waters, by the German Mine Sweeping Administration. A French officer of the Int'l Central Mine Clearance Board's subordinate Mediterranean Zone Board witnessed "Operation Retail" on 12–13 November 1946, the Royal Navy clearance of sea mines during the Corfu Channel incident. In the 21st century, the main governments that fund humanitarian mine clearance are the United States (US), the European Union (EU), Japan, Norway, and the Netherlands, which accounted in 2014 for 72% of all international funding. Germany, the UK, and Denmark are also significant donors. Danish Demining Group (DDG) was established in 1997 and today functions as a humanitarian mine action unit within the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), hence benefiting from synergies in cooperation.