Contaminated by: antipersonnel mines (light contamination)

Article 5 Deadline: 1 March 2021
(Not on track to meet deadline)

There is no accurate assessment of the extent of mine contamination. The Republic of Senegal has provided inconsistent reports of remaining contamination as of the end of 2016. In 2016, 29,350m² was cleared and 20 antipersonnel mines were destroyed.

Recommendations for action

• Senegal should complete non-technical survey 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. In 2016–2017, it continued to report inconsistent figures for the amount of confirmed and suspected contaminated areas remaining, as it had in previous years.

According to the CNAMS, as of 31 December 2016, a total of 81 areas of antipersonnel mine contamination remained to be addressed, of which 61 were confirmed hazardous areas (CHAs) with a total size of 305,486m² and 20 were SHAs with an unknown size.[1] In addition, as in 2015, Senegal reported that 144 areas still remained to be surveyed, including 127 areas in Bignona department, four in Oussouye, and 13 in Ziguinchor.[2]

In April 2017, however, CNAMS also reported that 52 CHAs, of which 41 were CHAs covering a total of 529,027m² and 11 CHAs with an unknown size, remained to be addressed.[3]

Previously, at the end of 2015, CNAMS had reported 83 areas of confirmed and suspected contamination with a size of nearly 1.6km². Of this, a total of 56 were CHAs with a total size of 465,127m² had been identified, and 27 were SHAs whose extent had not been defined.[4] However, in its 2017 Article 7 report, Senegal gave a different account, stating that that at the end of 2015, a total of 47 CHAs with a total size of 233,840m² remained to be addressed, along with 20 SHAs with an unknown size.[5]

Four departments (Bignona, Goudomp, Oussouye, and Ziguinchor) out of the total of 45 in Senegal 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 (as at end 2016)[6]

Note: N/K = not known.

In 2016, Handicap International (HI) conducted non-technical survey for the first time in 80 localities near the northwestern portion of the Senegal-Gambia border in the Casamance region, which had formerly been inaccessible for mine action operations due to security concerns. Five new SHAs were established as a result of the survey. A further 11 localities in Bignona in the northwest were tasked for non-technical survey in April 2016. The survey confirmed seven areas as mined, one in the district of Niaguis in Ziguinchor region, a second in the district of Nyassia in the department Ziguinchor, and a further five in the district of Niagha, in the department of Goudomp, in Sedhiou region.[7]

According to HI, given the historical evidence of frequent clashes and rebel bases in the area, the identification of SHAs in northwest Casamance suggests a high probability that other areas of contamination will be found as survey progresses further east, nearer to the northern border.[8] The extent of contamination is better known in the south of Casamance, where previous survey in the region has identified several SHAs, between the Guinea-Bissau border and the Casamance River to the north and Atlantic Ocean to the west.[9]

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 the MFDC has continued despite a ceasefire in place since 2004.

In 2016, mine and explosive remnants of war (ERW) contamination continued to pose a threat to local residents in the Casamance region, seriously hindered socio-economic development, prevented the return of displaced populations, and limited access to agricultural land and livelihood activities.[10]

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 the Senegalese National Mine Action Center (Centre National d’Action Antimines, CNAMS). Regional mine action coordination committees have been established in Kolda, Sédhiou, and Ziguinchor departments.

Strategic planning

Senegal submitted an updated workplan in accordance with its Article 5 extension request in May 2017 for the remainder of its extension period, until 1 March 2021. The plan contains a list of all known or suspected contaminated areas and establishes annual targets for the amount of contamination to be addressed. However, there are inconsistencies in its reporting on the total contamination remaining and the size of projected annual milestones for land release. Additionally, Senegal’s extension request is until March 2021, but the plan does not contain details of work to be carried out after 2018.

According to the updated workplan, Senegal would address 17 CHAs with a total size of approximately 169,771m² in 2017; and 24 CHAs with a size of 343,856m² and 11 CHAs with an unknown size, along with non-technical survey of the remaining 144 areas, in 2018; and any areas confirmed as CHA by survey activities in 2019–2020.[11] This would appear to indicate that at least 513,626m² of CHA will be addressed; however, according to Senegal’s most recent Article 7 transparency report, only about 305,000m² of CHA remained as of the end of 2016. Senegal has alternatively reported that a total of 41 CHAs with a combined size of 529,023m² would be addressed in 2017–2018, along with 11 SHAs of unknown sizes; and that the 144 unsurveyed areas will be subjected to non-technical survey in 2019. It has estimated the remaining contaminated area to cover a total of 1.3km².[12]

The workplan does not include a detailed budget to accompany planned activities, nor does it include a resource mobilization plan to account for how external funding will be secured.

Standards

There were no significant developments regarding Senegal’s national mine action standards in 2016. According to HI, the standards have not been updated since 2013.[13]

Operators

In 2016, HI deployed a total of 15 deminers and 14 support personnel, two mine detection dogs (MDDs), and a mechanical excavator, which was introduced for the first time in 2016. HI stopped using the MDDs in December 2016 “due to lack of performance.”[14] HI remained the only international mine action operator in Senegal in 2016 and as of September 2017 was preparing to end its demining operations in the country due to lack of funding.[15]

Land Release

The total mined area reported released by HI in Senegal in 2016 was 147,650m²: just under 118,300m² through survey and 29,350m² by clearance, with the destruction of 20 antipersonnel mines. In comparison, HI released 911,000m² by survey in 2015, including just over 908,000m² through non-technical survey and a further 3,000m² by technical survey, but no antipersonnel mine clearance occurred.

CNAMS has reported that 21 CHAs with a size of just over 101,370m² were released by either clearance or technical survey between 2015 and 31 March 2017, with the destruction of 22 mines.[16]

Survey

HI initiated a new 14-month project in July 2015 for non-technical survey of 80 localities and technical survey covering some 53,000m².[17]

In 2016, HI reported confirming two mined areas with a combined size of 29,350m², including one area in Niaguis, Ziguinchor department with a size of 14,000m² (22,162m² were subsequently cleared) and one area in Goudomp, Sédhiou department with a size of 15,350m². It also canceled seven SHAs with a total size of 62,235m² in Goudomp through non-technical survey. A total of 56,061m² was reduced by technical survey.[18] CNAMS did not, however, report that any non-technical survey was carried out in 2016.[19]

Previously, nearly 911,000m² of SHA was released by survey activities in 2015. HI, which began surveying in December 2015, reported that as of 31 December 2015, it had already canceled 19 SHAs with a size of 908,000m² and reduced a further 3,043m² by technical survey.[20]

Clearance

In 2016, HI cleared the two areas confirmed in Niaguis and Goudomp with a combined size of 29,350m², destroying 19 antipersonnel mines in Niaguis, and one antipersonnel mine and two antivehicle mines in Goudomp. HI attributed the increased clearance output in 2016, along with the significant increase in land released by technical survey, to its ability to carry out additional technical survey tasks with six-months of funding provided by a government of Senegal grant, and the use of a mechanical excavator to support manual demining.[21]

In its updated 2016–2021 workplan, CNAMS reported that nine areas with a size of 58,414m² were cleared in 2016, and one antipersonnel mine destroyed.[22] However, it reported differing totals that 58,594m² was cleared in 2016, with the destruction of 19 antipersonnel mines, while also reporting separately that a total of 56,061m² was cleared with the destruction of 18 antipersonnel mines and one antivehicle mine.[23]

No antipersonnel mines were cleared in Senegal in 2015. CNAMS has given conflicting accounts that two areas with a size of 29,156m² were cleared in 2015, while also stating that a total of 3,043m² was cleared during the year; however, no antipersonnel mines were reportedly found according to either report.[24]

Inconsistency in clearance task orders since 2013

Senegal has been criticized for issuing task orders assigning clearance assets to areas not known to be affected by mines. It has also been accused of failing to clear considerable mine contamination in unmarked minefields around former and active Senegalese military bases, despite being readily accessible and under the control of the Senegalese Armed Forces.

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, in areas not known to be affected by mines.[25] However, Senegal cited its politico-security situation to justify deployment of its clearance assets in areas where the safety of its demining teams could be guaranteed.[26] According to HI, when task orders were given in November 2013, 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.[27]

Additionally, reports indicated that considerable mine contamination may lie in unmarked minefields around former and active Senegalese military bases.[28] 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 even 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, though this did not occur, reportedly for logistic and security reasons.[29] 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.[30]

However, in August 2017, CNAMS reported that it has already demined around all the military bases, with the help of the army where that was necessary.[31] HI has reported, that its teams cleared 22,162m² in Boutoute-Djibanar in connection with a former army base between 24 April 2015 and 23 December 2016, destroying “around” 19 antipersonnel mines. Some clearance around military installations was also 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).[32]

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.[33] It reported that “indeed, there is a significant amount of land demined in relation to the number of mines discovered,” while claiming 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.”[34]

In 2017, HI reported that task criteria were developed according to the results of the non-technical survey carried out by HI in 2014, and updated information from further survey in 2016 and priorities reported by the local communities.[35] It reported, however, that more than 50% of areas cleared in 2016 had no evidence of antipersonnel mine contamination.[36]

Article 5 Compliance

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty (and in accordance with the five-year extension granted by States Parties in 2015), Senegal is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 March 2021.[37]

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 in December 2015, 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.”[38] Previously, Senegal reported release of about 730,725m² and 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.[39]

In its latest extension request, Senegal noted as circumstances impeding compliance with its international legal obligations: circumstances impeding compliance with its international legal obligations include 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.[40] Senegal has also stated that security conditions and lack of funding could affect its ability to complete clearance in a timely manner.[41]

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.[42]

Senegal’s 2015 extension request foresees expenditure of some US$11.5 million to support its mine action program, of which US$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).[43] Senegal’s updated workplan for 2016–2021 does not, though, include a detailed budget for activities scheduled under its annual targets. It notes that Senegal’s own annual contribution in 2015–2016 was nearly $1.8 million and that external funding of $781,478 was provided by the United States (US) to HI.[44]

In its Article 7 report for 2016, Senegal reported that FCFA 500 million (some $850,000) would be assigned for mine action from the national budget annually.[45] According to CNAMS, its operating costs are included in the national budget, but reported that resources allocated for 2015 were not able to be mobilized until late 2016, due to complex procurement procedures. No national budget allocation for mine action operations had been recorded for 2017, it said.[46]

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.[47] At the same time, CNAMS has stated that talks with the MFDC are made by authorities in Dakar exclusively, and not by the mine action center.[48] 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 August 2017, CNAMS reiterated that the implementation of the revised workplan and the feasibility of the 2021 mine clearance deadline are based on the assumption that the GRPC obtains the MFDC’s agreement on the inclusion of demining activities in the peace process, in order to allow for the rapid deployment of demining teams.[49] In the workplan, CNAMS stated that it was unable to provide detailed updates on the development of the peace process as it is not a member of the GRPC negotiation group. However, it reported that events in the Gambia had improved the security situation in the north of Casamance, particularly in the department of Bignona, allowing significant numbers of displaced persons to return. It expected that the continued evolution of the peace process would ensure better security conditions and improve access for mine clearance in planned locations.[50]

Previously, in 2015, NPA criticized CNAMS for obstructing dialogue between operators and the armed forces in particular, which could provide the specific locations of mined areas. 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.[51]

In August 2017, CNAMS had reiterated its three priorities for 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 non-technical survey in the 144 communities not yet surveyed; and mobilization of resources to enable increased demining productivity.[52]

The Monitor acknowledges the contributions of the Mine Action Review (www.mineactionreview.org), which has conducted the mine action research in 2017, including on survey and clearance, and shared all its resulting landmine and cluster munition reports 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

Casualties Overview

No new mine/explosive remnants of war (ERW) casualties were reported in the Republic of Senegal in 2016.[1] However, casualties continued to occur in 2017. On 30 August 2017, three persons were injured, including a baby, when their cart drove over a mine in Casamance.[2]

In 2015, the Monitor identified two mine casualties in Senegal.[3] The 2015 total had represented a significant decrease from previous years.[4] This decrease 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.[5] Following an intensification of violence since 2011, violence decreased since 2013, explaining the decline in casualties among combatants over the period.[6]

With reduced support for demining in Senegal[7] and new mines previously reported having been laid,[8] it is feared that numbers of victims of mine/ERW may increase.[9]

The Monitor identified at least 849 casualties (188 killed; 648 injured; 13 unknown) between 1988 and the end of 2016.[10] This included 592 civilian casualties and 244 military casualties.[11] As of 31 December 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.[12] Since 2005, all reported casualties have been caused by mines.[13]

Action points based on findings

• Ensure the sustainability of physical rehabilitation and psychosocial support 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/explosive remnants of war (ERW) victims in the Casamance region.
• Ensure the inclusion of mine/ERW survivors in the planning of victim assistance.
• Ensure the sustainability of psychological support services for mine/ERW victims and other persons with disabilities 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.

Victim Assistance

By the end of 2016, there were at least 648 mine/ERW survivors in Senegal (439 civilian and 209 military survivors).

Victim assistance since 2015

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

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

In 2015, the president of Senegal launched a new “Equality of Chances Card” (carte d’égalité des chances) aimed at providing all insured persons with disabilities, including mine/ERW victims, with access to health and a range of services.[1]

Since 2015, a number of activities in support of mine/ERW survivors stopped, including outreach activities by the Kenya Psychiatric Center[2] and the Academic Centre for Educational and Professional Orientation (Centre académique de l’orientation scolaire et professionnelle, CAOSP).[3] Due to a lack of financial support and supplies, the Regional Orthopedic Appliance Centre (Le Centre régional d'appareillage orthopédique, CRAO), was unable to meet the demand.[4] Since 2013, the ICRC Special Fund for the Disabled (SFD)’s (in January 2017 renamed MoveAbility) partnership in Senegal was put on hold pending a renewed commitment from the authorities concerned.[5]

Victim assistance in 2016

In 2016, with the improving security situation in Casamance, more and more internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees, mainly from Gambia, returned to their homes; certain areas, however, remained inaccessible because of security concerns, including mines in areas bordering Guinea-Bissau.[6]

Throughout 2016, emergency medical care was limited. Response times varied depending on the location of the incident and the army provided assistance. Ziguinchor regional hospital was the only medical center in a position to provide emergency medical care to mine victims.[7] Follow-up medical care was only available in the three regional hospitals (Ziguinchor, Kolda, and Sédhiou), which had sufficient capacity but had equipment that only worked intermittently and experienced shortages of supplies.[8] These three hospitals and their satellite centers have signed agreements with the National Mine Action Centre (Centre national d’action antimines au Sénégal, CNAMS) to provide rehabilitation services to mine/ERW victims. However, the hospitals are unable to provide these services due to shortages of raw material.[9]

Assessing victim assistance needs

No structured needs assessments surveys were conducted in 2016. However, CNMAS collected information on mine victims in an ongoing manner in conjunction with other assistance activities.[10] The last needs assessments surveys were undertaken in 2013 by CNAMS, ISAD, and HI.[11]

Victim assistance coordination[12]

In 2016, no coordination and planning meetings on victim assistance that included all stakeholders were held.[13] CNAMS held several bilateral meetings with NGOs as well as the ICRC.[14] In 2016, 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.[15] 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.[16] Regular informal meetings took place in 2016 between representatives of CNAMS and of ISAD.[17]

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 2016. CNAMS launched a mid-term evaluation of the PANAV and its impact in 2013.[18] The results of this evaluation were finalized and made public in 2014[19] 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.[20] No funding was available in 2016 to conduct the final evaluation of the PANAV, which in turn hindered the development of a new victim assistance plan.[21]

Senegal did not provide updates on victim assistance at Mine Ban Treaty international meetings in 2016. Senegal submitted its Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 report for calendar year 2016, which includes information on victim assistance.[22]

Inclusion and participation in victim assistance

In 2016, mine/ERW survivors and their representative organizations were not involved in victim assistance planning.[23]

Service accessibility and effectiveness

Victim assistance activities in 2016

On 30 April 2015, the president of Senegal launched an initiative titled the “Equality of Chances Card” (“carte d’égalité des chances”). It targets all persons with disabilities, including mine/ERW victims, so that they can receive healthcare and rehabilitation services at a reduced cost if they subscribe to a health insurance. The initiative also encompasses improved access to education, vocational training, transports, benefits, and employment. As of February 2017, over 20,000 persons with disabilities had received an equality of chances card.[24]

In 2016, the physical rehabilitation center in Ziguinchor had difficulty in meeting the demand for orthotic devices due to deteriorating working tools and a constant shortage of materials.[25] Therefore, the ICRC signed an agreement with CNAMS to send people from Senegal for rehabilitation abroad. Within the framework of this project, ISAD was responsible for covering the costs of the accommodation, transport, and food of beneficiaries traveling to Guinea Bissau to be treated.[26] As of June 2017, 63 survivors had received new prosthetics in Guinea-Bissau.[27]

Psychological support services provided by the Kenya Psychiatric Center decreased significantly in 2016 and through 2017. The SNP-funded project between ISAD and the CNAMS ended and specialists of the center were no longer able to visit and provide group support to mine/ERW victims in host communities. The center also stopped providing ergotherapy services due to a lack of funding.[28] The Kenya Psychiatric Center was the only facility providing psychological support to mine/ERW survivors and other persons with disabilities for all regions of Casamance.[29]

In 2016, due to funding shortages the CAOSP was not able to provide services in the villages of origin of child victims of mines/ERW.[30] In the Dakar and Ziguinchor regions, HI trained teachers in inclusive education for children with disabilities.[31] In 2016, UNICEF funding was channeled through the Departmental Committee for the Protection of the Child (Comité Départemental de Protection de l’enfant, CDPE). However, as a result of the unreasonable length and difficulty of administrative processes under the CDPE, projects for children with disabilities were limited.[32]

HI supported the development of companies run by persons with disabilities in the regions of Dakar, Kolda, and Ziguinchor.[33]

The government provided grants, managed vocational training in regional centers, and offered funding for persons with disabilities to establish businesses.[34]

Senegalese law prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to healthcare, transport, the judicial system, and the provision of other state services. Senegal did not enforce these provisions adequately in 2016.[35] The law also mandates accessibility for persons with disabilities, but there remained a lack of infrastructure to assist them.[36]