Contaminated by: antipersonnel mines (light contamination)

Article 5 Deadline: 1 March 2021
(Unclear if on track to meet deadline)

There is no accurate assessment of the extent of mine contamination, though at the end of 2015 the Republic of Senegal reported that 1.6km² of confirmed and suspected contamination remained to be addressed. Survey activities recommenced in 2015, but no clearance of antipersonnel mines was conducted. 

Recommendations for action

• Senegal should complete non-technical survey (NTS) as soon as possible and, where security allows, establish a more complete and accurate estimate of its mine threat. It should record suspected hazardous areas (SHAs) on the basis of demonstrable evidence and with specific size estimates.
• Senegal should prioritize clearance and technical survey in areas readily accessible that clearly evidence the existence of mines.
• The Senegalese National Mine Action Center (Centre National d’Action Antimines, CNAMS) should take immediate action to improve transparency and to facilitate dialogue between all actors concerned by land release operations, as well as to restore confidence among donors and international operators in its mine action program.
• CNAMS should engage the Senegalese armed forces to participate in mine action activities and provide information on the location of mined areas and other resources to support clearance.
• Senegal should report regularly and transparently on its clearance efforts and results, including in the annual Article 7 transparency reports. 

Contamination 

Senegal has still to establish an accurate assessment of the extent of its mine contamination. As at the end of 2015, Senegal reported that 83 areas with a size of nearly 1.6km² of confirmed and suspected contamination remained to be addressed. Of this, a total of 56 confirmed hazardous areas (CHAs) with a total size of 465,127m² had been identified, along with a further 27 SHAs whose extent had not been defined.[1] Of the 216 localities that Senegal reported as still requiring survey in June 2015, by the end of the year, 67 had been canceled by non-technical survey and five confirmed as mined. The 144 areas remaining to be surveyed covered a total area of just over 1.56km².[2]

Four departments (Bignona, Goudomp, Oussouye and Ziguinchor) out of 45 still contain confirmed or suspected mined areas. The affected departments are located in the Casamance region of Senegal, between Gambia to the north and Guinea-Bissau to the south.

Antipersonnel mine contamination by province at end 2015[3]

Note: N/K = Not known

Mine contamination in Senegal is the result of more than 30 years of fighting between the armed forces and a non-state armed group, the Movement of Democratic Forces of Casamance (Mouvement des Forces Démocratiques de Casamance, MFDC). Sporadic fighting with some factions of MFDC has continued despite a ceasefire in place since 2004.

Mine contamination is said to pose a great risk to local residents, seriously hindering the socio-economic development of Casamance, and limiting access to agricultural land.[4] Senegal reported that demining of Gouraf village in Ziguinchor department had allowed more than 120 families to return and livelihood activities to resume in 2015.[5]

Program Management

The National Commission for the Implementation of the Ottawa Convention serves as the national mine action authority for Senegal. Demining operations in Casamance are coordinated by CNAMS. Regional mine action coordination committees have been established in Kolda, Sédhiou, and Ziguinchor departments.[6]

Strategic planning 

Senegal’s latest Article 5 deadline extension request, submitted in June 2015, included plans for survey and clearance in 2016–2020. The request projects that remaining non-technical survey in the 216 localities would be carried out in 2016–2017, though without explaining how the insecurity reported in 111 of these areas, which is said to have prevented survey activities from being conducted in previous years, would be overcome. In August 2016, CNAMS reported that its extension request plan would be updated annually based on the results of the peace process, but did not provide any details on any further developments.[7] 

Concerning technical survey and clearance, the plan projects that:

• In January 2016–June 2017: operations would be conducted in Goudomp;
• In October 2016–December 2016: operations would be conducted in Oussouye;
• In October 2016–December 2018: operations would be conducted in Ziguinchor; and
• In October 2016–June 2020: operations would be conducted in Bignona.

Operators

Handicap International (HI) initiated a new 14-month project in July 2015 for NTS of 80 localities and technical survey over some 53,000m².[8] It deployed 24 demining personnel and a team with two mine detection dogs (MDD) for technical survey on paths/roads.[9] It was the only international mine action operator in Senegal in 2015.[10]

In 2014, NPA withdrew from Senegal as a result of “government-imposed limitations on demining activities,” which had prevented it from deploying demining resources where the necessary clearance could be done safely, and from undertaking NTS in areas suspected to be contaminated but which had not been surveyed.[11] In 2015, Mechem ended its operations in Senegal due to lack of funding. 

Land Release

A total of just over 911,000m² of SHA was released by survey activities. No mine clearance occurred in Senegal in 2015. Senegal did not report on the extent of any land release in 2014.

HI began surveying in December 2015. By the end of the year, HI reported having canceled 19 SHAs with a size of 908,00m² and reducing a further 3,043m² by technical survey.[12] According to CNAMS, five CHAs with a total size of just over 14,670m² were confirmed by the survey.[13] This compared to NTS of 209 localities in 2014, when HI’s operations focused only on NTS activities.[14]

Progress in 2016

As at the end of August 2016, HI had reduced an additional 29,156m² through technical survey in Diagnon, in Ziguinchor department.[15]

Deminer safety

There were no reported demining accidents in 2015.[16] As a result of a serious security incident in 2013, to help ensure deminer safety, Senegal assigned a national contact committee to meet MFDC leaders and discuss, among a number of topics, areas that could safely be cleared on a case-by-case basis. Whenever a specific agreement is reached, CNAMS says that it issues task orders for that area.[17] Armed men had kidnapped 12 deminers working for Mechem in the village of Kaïlou (Ziguinchor department). All were later released safely, although nine were held for 70 days.[18] The government ordered a halt to all demining activities, a suspension that lasted until November 2013.[19]

Inconsistency in clearance task orders since 2013

Task orders issued by CNMAS have been criticized as they assign clearance assets to areas not known to be affected by mines.[20] In November 2013, Mechem was tasked to clear sections of National Road 6 (Route nationale 6, RN6) and a dozen laterite quarries used in a project to renovate the RN6.[21] According to HI, only one polygon crossed by the RN6 in Sindone Lagoua (20km from Ziguinchor) was recorded as an SHA in the IMSMA database, and the quarries had never been recorded as suspected or confirmed mined areas.[22]

Additionally, reports indicated that considerable mine contamination may lie in unmarked minefields around former and active Senegalese military bases.[23] But since the resumption of clearance operations and even though most of the military bases can be readily accessed—as they are under the control of the Senegalese armed forces—they have not been cleared nor considered as a priority for demining operations. Some areas are confirmed as contaminated: these include the village of Djirack, in which operations were planned to start in 2016. Others remain as either SHAs or as credible, if unrecorded and unconfirmed, reports of contamination by local populations, such as in Badème, Basséré, Kouring, and Santhiaba Mandjack.[24] Some clearance around military installations was carried out by HI in 2007–2012 in Darsalam and Gonoum, during which 177 antipersonnel mines were destroyed in cooperation with the Senegalese armed forces, and by Mechem in 2013 in Mpack, during which 136 antipersonnel mines were destroyed (representing all the mines found that year).[25]

In August 2016, CNAMS reported that in its criteria for prioritizing tasks, emphasis was put on the level of security, the economic importance of the area, the desire of populations to return to areas, and the social cohesion of communities.[26] It reported that “indeed, there is a significant amount of land demined in relation to the number of mines discovered,” while noting that “it must be remembered that the main interest is to remove suspicion and to make accessible to local populations land which had formerly been abandoned.”[27]

Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 Compliance 

In December 2015, the Mine Ban Treaty Fourteenth Meeting of States Parties granted Senegal a second extension to its Article 5 deadline, for a period of five years. Senegal is obligated to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 March 2021.

Senegal’s previous Article 5 clearance deadline was set to expire on 1 March 2016 under its first extension request, approved in 2008. In June 2015, Senegal submitted a request to extend its Article 5 clearance deadline until March 2021. 

In granting the second extension request, States Parties noted that Senegal “did not have clear knowledge of the size and location of areas that will warrant mine clearance” as well as its commitment “to undertake technical survey activities and to develop a cancellation procedure which may result in implementation proceeding much faster and in a more cost-effective manner.”[28] Previously, Senegal reported release of about 730,725m² and the destruction of 383 mines in 2008–2013. Most of these results were achieved between February 2012 and May 2013 with 548,137m² cleared, representing three-quarters of the total and 259 mines destroyed.[29]

In its latest extension request, Senegal noted as circumstances impeding compliance with its international legal obligations: general insecurity; MFDC reticence to agree to demining operations; the eight-month suspension of operations in 2013; ongoing concerns over deminer safety; and a decrease in technical and financial resources in recent years.[30] Senegal has also noted that security conditions and lack of funding could affect its ability to complete clearance in a timely manner.[31] 

However, while Senegal recorded a significant increase in clearance productivity in 2012–2013, the way CNAMS has allocated tasks after the 2013 kidnapping has been criticized for directing resources and clearance assets to areas without credible risk of mine contamination, while requests from operators to conduct survey prior to deploying clearance assets were denied.[32]

Senegal’s extension request foresees expenditure of some $11.5 million to support its mine action program, of which $6.4 million would be allocated to technical survey and clearance. Senegal has pledged to contribute to about 30% of the total to cover the running costs of its program (approx. $3.3 million).[33]

There may be political obstacles to the implementation of a five-year workplan for 2016–2020. Senegal has regularly indicated that all demining operations would be conducted within the framework of the ongoing peace talks and would first be approved by MFDC in meetings with Senegalese officials.[34] In that context, in 2015, talks between an MFDC faction (Front Sud) and Senegal were reportedly underway concerning the restarting of demining in at least seven villages in Nyassia (Ziguinchor department). The process was, though, interrupted following clashes between the Front Sud and the Senegalese army in April 2015.[35]

While continuing to state that demining operations must be approved by the MFDC, CNAMS has stated that talks with the MFDC are made by authorities in Dakar exclusively, and not by the mine action center.[36] There is no explanation in the action plan presented in Senegal’s second extension request of how peace negotiations conducted in Dakar by the Reflection Group on Peace in Casamance (Groupe de Réflexion sur la Paix en Casamance, GRPC) will include the issue of mine clearance.

In an August 2015 report, NPA criticized CNAMS for obstructing dialogue between operators and the armed forces in particular, which could provide the specific locations of mined areas. According to NPA, there is overwhelming evidence that laying of landmines by rebel forces was sporadic, while the Sudanese armed forces placed hundreds, if not thousands, of mines around military outposts in Casamance. Other stakeholders echoed that CNAMS was preventing dialogue between parties, including the spokesperson of the MFDC, who stated that there was a complete lack of communication with members of CNAMS.[37] 

In August 2016, CNAMS did not provide any indication that any discussions with MFDC had occurred. It stated that there was no formal entity in charge of liaising between CNAMS and the GRPC, and that dialogue would be entertained through “supervisory authorities.”[38]

Survey activities are planned to start in 2016, although more than half of the concerned areas are said to be inaccessible due to insecurity. Senegal has not provided details on whether or not the conditions in some of these areas have changed and if surveyors can effectively access them.

CNAMS reported it had three priorities for 2016 towards meeting Senegal’s 2021 Article 5 deadline: agreement of all parties to the conflict on the principle of clearance of mined areas; access to conduct NTS in the 144 communities not yet surveyed; and mobilization of resources to enable increased demining productivity.[39] It also stated that demining of 44,000m² in Goudomp department was planned to start in early October 2016, funded by the national government.[40]

The Monitor gratefully acknowledges the contributions of the Mine Action Review supported and published by Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), which conducted mine action research in 2016 and shared it with the Monitor. The Monitor is responsible for the findings presented online and in its print publications.

The government of the Republic of Senegal has identified some 480,000m² (0.48km²) of confirmed mined areas and 12 suspected mined areas, and has also reported that survey was still required in 216 localities.[1] In June 2015, Senegal submitted a request to extend its mine clearance deadline until 2021.

Senegal’s mine action program did not receive international funding in 2014. In 2013, Senegal received US$2.4 million in international assistance from five donors. More than 80% ($2 million) of international contributions were earmarked for clearance.

The decline of international support can be explained by the stagnation of land release results in recent years despite the significant amount of support provided ($7.7million was allocated to clearance work in 2012–2013), as well as Senegal’s apparent reluctance to conduct clearance in areas readily accessible, following the abduction of deminers in March 2013. This situation has led to the departure of one operator and a number of major donors (the European Union, Germany, and Norway) in 2014.[2]

Senegal reported contributing about US$3.9 million to its mine action program between 2007–2014, although all funding was allocated to salary and operations expenses.[3]

In its most recent extension request, Senegal estimated that a budget of $11.5 million would be needed to support its mine action program until 2021, of which $6.5 million would be allocated to land release operations (57%), almost $700,000 to victim assistance (6%), and some $400,000 to risk education (4%). Senegal has planned to provide approximately $3.3 million, about 30% of the total, to cover the running costs of its program.[4] Senegal also noted that lack of funding could affect its ability to complete clearance in a timely manner.[5]

Summary of contributions: 2010–2014[6]

Note: N/R = not reported

Action points based on findings

• Ensure the sustainability of physical rehabilitation and psychosocial support for mine/explosive remnants of war (ERW) victims and other persons with disabilities in the Casamance region.
• Ensure regular and effective coordination on victim assistance with all stakeholders and adopt new victim assistance plan.
• Work on developing economic inclusion projects for mine/ERW victims in the Casamance region.

Victim assistance commitments

The Republic of Senegal is responsible for a significant number of survivors of landmines and ERW who are in need. Senegal has made commitments to provide victim assistance through the Mine Ban Treaty.

Senegal ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on 7 September 2010.

Casualties Overview

In 2015, the Monitor identified two mine casualties in Senegal.[1] All casualties were adult males, including one civilians and one member of the Senegalese military forces. All casualties in 2015 occurred in of the region of Ziguinchor, Casamance.

The two casualties identified for 2015 represented a significant decrease from previous years.[2] This decrease in the number of casualties can be explained by a general decrease in casualties among combatants. In 2011 and 2012, there was an increase in mine casualties among military or security forces, while in 2013, just two of the eight casualties were military, and in 2014, none of the casualties were combatants. Fluctuations in the security situation in Casamance have resulted in variable annual mine casualty rates in Senegal over the last several years.[3] Following an intensification of violence since 2011, violence decreased since 2013, explaining the decline in casualties among combatants over the period.[4] While the number of civilian casualties has remained at similar levels in recent years,[5] 2015 has seen a significant decrease in the overall number of casualties, including civilians.

With reduced support for demining in Senegal[6] and new mines reported having been laid,[7] it is feared that numbers of victims of mine/ERW may increase.[8]

The Monitor identified at least 849 casualties (188 killed; 648 injured; 13 unknown) between 1988 and the end of 2015.[9] This included 592 civilian casualties and 244 military casualties.[10] As of June 2016, the Senegalese National Mine Action Center (Centre national d’action antimines au Sénégal, CNAMS) registered a total of 826 casualties (187 killed; 639 injured) of which 590 were civilians and 236 were military.[11] Since 2005, all reported casualties have been caused by mines.[12] In 2015, both casualties were caused by antipersonnel mines.

Victim Assistance

By the end of 2015, there were at least 648 mine/ERW survivors in Senegal (439 civilian and 209 military survivors).

Victim assistance during the Cartagena Action Plan 2010–2014

Most mine/ERW survivors in Senegal live in the Casamance region where services are much more limited than elsewhere in the country.

Senegal has reported on several occasions that it is committed to victim assistance, but at the same time has acknowledged that needs were not being met due to a lack of resources. The government relied on international and national NGOs, including the Senegalese Association of Mine Victims (Association sénégalaise des victimes de mines, ASVM), Handicap International (HI), and the ICRC to implement activities. Years of conflict and continued intermittent violence devastated infrastructure and prevented access to services.

Psychosocial support had been provided by the Kenya Psychiatric Center (Centre psychiatrique de Kenya) with the support of CNAMS. Financial support from CNAMS to the center to offer their services outside Ziguinchor has not been provided since 2012.[13] The center was the only facility providing psychological support to mine survivors and other persons with disabilities for all regions of Casamance. In 2015, access to these services was supported by the International Campaign to Ban Landmines’ Survivor Network Project (SNP) through ASVM, which provided funding to the Kenya Center and ensured that specialists were able to visit mine/ERW victims in their own communities.[14]

Throughout the period, efforts were made for economic reintegration and education opportunities for survivors, but overall this assistance remained inadequate because there were few programs targeting survivors and they had difficulties accessing broader programs for all vulnerable groups. While different activities and services targeting survivors were implemented every year, the question of sustainability and the long-term social and economic inclusion of victims had yet to be tackled by authorities.[15] In 2015, the “Equality of Chances Card” was introduced to tackle these issues.[16] Military survivors received separate services provided exclusively by the Ministry of Armed Forces, which were mostly free of charge and superior to those offered to civilians, but still had gaps.[17]

Victim assistance in 2015

In 2015, with the improving security situation in Casamance, some internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees returned to their homes, but certain areas remained inaccessible because of mines—some newly laid—and other security concerns.[18]

Throughout 2015, emergency medical care was limited and response times depended on the location of the incident; the army provided assistance. NGOs continued to consider evacuation of injured victims as one of the biggest challenges in accessing appropriate emergency medical care.[19] Follow-up medical care was only available in the two regional hospitals, which had sufficient capacity but had equipment that only worked intermittently and experienced shortages of supplies. These two hospitals and their satellite centers also provided physical rehabilitation. On 30 April 2015, the president of Senegal launched a new initiative called the “Equality of Chances Card” (carte d’égalité des chances) targeting all persons with disabilities, including mine/ERW victims, so that they can receive free healthcare and rehabilitation, as well as improved access to education, vocational training, transports, benefits, and employment.[20]

Assessing victim assistance needs

No needs assessments were conducted in 2015.[21] During 2013, CNAMS, ASVM, and HI conducted various surveys.[22]

Victim assistance coordination[23]

In 2015, no coordination and planning meetings on victim assistance that included all stakeholders were held.[24] The CNAMS held several internal meetings, as well as bilateral meetings with NGOs.[25] In 2015, no meetings of the CRC were reported. The CRC, established in 2011, brings together CNAMS with local and international organizations working in the region under the chairmanship of the governor of the Casamance region.[26] However, the focus of the CRC is on mine action more broadly and since its inception, national organizations noted that while victim assistance was sometimes discussed and debated during these meetings, the CRC was not fulfilling its coordination role.[27] Regular coordination meetings took place in 2015 between representatives of CNAMS and of ASVM.[28]

Senegal’s PANAV included a mechanism for monitoring and evaluating progress in its implementation, though no reports had been made available that compared victim assistance progress against the PANAV through the end of 2015. CNAMS launched a mid-term evaluation of the PANAV and its impact in 2013.[29] The results of this evaluation were finalized and made public in 2014[30] and two key recommendations were made: 1) to decentralize the support provided to health facilities in order to ensure that victims in rural areas can also benefit from those services; 2) strengthen psychological support to mine/ERW victims.[31] No funding was available in 2015 to conduct the final evaluation of the PANAV, which in turn hindered the development of a new victim assistance plan. However, CNAMS reported that the objectives of the PANAV were still appropriate in 2015.[32]

Senegal did not provide updates on victim assistance at Mine Ban Treaty international meetings in 2015. As of 1 October 2016, Senegal had not submitted its Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 report for the 2015 calendar year.

Inclusion and participation in victim assistance

Mine/ERW survivors were involved through ASVM and international organizations in the design of victim assistance programming.[33] In 2015, two women with disabilities were nominated to high-level state positions; as counselor to the Senegal Presidency and as a counselor to the Economic, Social, and Environmental Committee (Conseil Economique, Social et Environemental, CESE).

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities in 2015[34]

In 2015, a positive dynamic between NGOs and CNAMS led to increased availability of services for mine/ERW victims and persons with disabilities.[35] Although challenges remained in rural areas, projects were introduced to develop services outside of urban centers. While the security situation in the northern part of Casamance improved throughout 2015, access to all services for survivors in this geographic area, as well as transportation, remained an issue. Access to certain areas due to the presence of mines remained a challenge especially for returning IDPs and refugees.[36]

On 30 September 2015, Senegal began implementing, the new Equality of Chances card in accordance with a new Social Orientation Law passed in 2012. The card was to provide access for free medical care, rehabilitation, transport, and education to all persons with disabilities.[37]

In 2015, the physical rehabilitation center in Ziguinchor had difficulty in meeting the demand for orthotic devices. Therefore, the ICRC signed an agreement with CNAMS to send people from Senegal for rehabilitation abroad. The first five patients were sent to Guinea-Bissau in December 2015.[38] Within the framework of this project, ASVM is responsible for covering for costs of the accommodation, transport, and food of beneficiaries traveling to Guinea Bissau to be treated.[39] Since 2013, ICRC Special Fund for the Disabled (SFD)’s partnership in Senegal was put on hold pending a renewed commitment from the authorities concerned.[40]

The Kenya Psychiatric Center continued to provide psychological support to mine survivors in 2015. A new project, a collaboration between ASVM and CNAMS and funded by the SNP, allowed for visits by specialists of the center and group support to mine/ERW victims in host communities in 2015. Fifty mine/ERW survivors benefited from this support, thus marking a significant increase in access to such services as opposed to previous years.[41] The center also continued therapy sessions, including ergotherapy, for mine/ERW victims.[42]

CNAMS provided school books and other educational materials to children victims of mines/ERW in 2015.[43] In collaboration with ASVM and CNAMS, the CAOSPE provided educational support and coaching to students, including in their villages of origin.[44]

The government provided grants, managed vocational training in regional centers, and offered funding for persons with disabilities to establish businesses.[45] In 2015, Senegal continued to fund the National Program for Community-based Reintegration (Programme National de Réadaptation à Base Communautaire, PNRBC), which supports socio-economic integration projects, vocational training, micro-finance, and education, as well as healthcare and physical rehabilitation.[46]

Senegalese law prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to healthcare, transport, and the provision of other state services. Senegal did not enforce these provisions adequately in 2015.[47] The law also mandates accessibility for persons with disabilities, but there remained a lack of infrastructure to assist them.[48]