Ecuador
Mine Action
20-Year Summary
The Republic of Ecuador became a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty on 1 October 1999. Ecuador began a process to enact domestic implementation measures in 2008, but there is no information about whether legislation has been implemented.
The mine problem in Ecuador originates from the 1995 border conflict with Peru. During the conflict, six provinces were mined, particularly in the Condor Mountain Range (Cordillera del Cóndor). Ecuador and Peru have cooperated in setting up a Binational Cooperation Program (Programa Binacional de Cooperación) in 2000 and developing a joint Manual for Humanitarian Demining (Manual Binacional de Desminado Humanitario) in April 2013. However, their projections over the amount of land to be cleared and the timeframe in which it will be done are contradictory.
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Treaty status |
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Mine Ban Treaty |
On track to meet deadline |
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Other conventions |
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Mine action management |
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Humanitarian Mine Action commenced |
2000 |
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National mine action management actors |
National Center for Humanitarian Demining (CENDESMI) |
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Mine action legislation |
No mine action legislation |
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Mine action strategic plan |
National Plan for Humanitarian Demining 2018–2022 for the contamination in the Zamora Chinchipe province. The clearance plan given for the Tiwinza square kilometer states that operations will be carried out by the Ecuador-Peru Binational Demining Unit. |
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Mine action standards |
Binational Manual for Humanitarian Demining, adopted with Peru in accordance with the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS), April 2013. |
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Current operators |
Battalion of Engineers No. 68 “COTOPAXI” General Command for Demining and EOD (CGDEOD) |
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Extent of contamination as of March 2018 |
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Landmines |
As of 31 December 2018: 0.08 km²[1] (4 areas) Extent of contamination: Light |
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Mine clearance 2014–2018 |
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Landmines |
Total ERW destroyed: 21 |
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Land release from 2000–2018[3] |
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Landmines |
Total antipersonnel mines destroyed: 12,131 |
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Progress and 2022 target |
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Landmines |
Target for the extension request (31 December 2022) Total area to be released: 0.06 km² (65,006m²)[4] |
Note: ERW = explosive remnants of war.
Contamination and Impact
Ecuador’s contamination results from its 1995 border conflict with Peru. The most heavily mined section of the border is the Condor mountain range (Cordillera del Condor) which was at the center of the dispute. Two of Ecuador’s 24 provinces still have mined areas, both located in the south of the country along the border with Peru.
Ecuador reported that mines impact local communities by restricting their movement across the border, limiting communication between groups and trade in traditional goods and services. The communities have become increasingly vulnerable to mine incidents in recent years as declining space for hunting and gathering has forced them deeper into the forests where there is greater mine contamination. Mines have also been displaced due to heavy rains, moving to areas where there is an increased chance that people will detonate them.[5]
Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 Compliance
Ecuador became a State Party on 1 October 1999 and has since had three Article 5 deadline extension requests. Under its latest extension, it is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 31 December 2022.[6]
Ecuador submitted a second request to extend its mine clearance deadline for three months until 31 December 2017, due to a serious earthquake on 16 April 2016, which required the diversion of the armed forces away from demining. The land and climatic conditions in the areas requiring clearance had also hindered progress.[7] In its Article 7 transparency report for 2016, Ecuador determined that it would need a further five years to fulfil its Article 5 obligations, and in March 2016 submitted an extension request until 31 December 2022.[8]
Mine Action Program
Management
The national mine action program is managed by the National Center for Humanitarian Demining (CENDESMI). It is an inter-ministerial body chaired by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility and is made up of the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Public Health, and the Army Corps of Engineers (CEE) through the Engineers Battalion No. 68 “COTOPAXI” and the General Command for Demining and EOD.[9]
Strategic planning
In its 2017 Article 5 deadline extension request Ecuador included a National Plan for Humanitarian Demining 2018–2022, which provides information on techniques, resources, mitigating factors, opportunities, and risks, as well as annual clearance targets and an annual demining budget. Ecuador has allocated a budget of $20,937, 735.36 for humanitarian demining operations, of which it has spent a total of $8,730,063.08.[10]
Legislation and standards
CENDESMI was set up by Executive Decree. There is no other national mine action legislation.
Under the Binational Cooperation Program (Programa Binacional de Cooperación) established in 2000, Ecuador and Peru adopted a Binational Manual for Humanitarian Demining (Manual Binacional de Desminado Humanitario) in April 2013 to unify the demining procedures of both states in accordance with the International Mine Action Standards (IMAS).
Information management
Ecuador uses the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) database.[11]
Land Release
Cooperation with Peru
The land remaining to be cleared comprises four areas of 80,230m² in Zamora Chinchipe.[12] However, there is also 7,595m2 (or 35,490m2) to be cleared in San Juan Bosco district, Morona Santiago province (the Tiwinza square kilometer), which has yet to be included in the annual targets.[13] This was the area at the center of the conflict between the two nations. Clearance of this area, a total of 122,880m² is planned to be carried out in 2018–2020[14] by the Ecuador-Peru Binational Demining Unit. This is seemingly contradicted in Peru’s “Updated National Plan for Humanitarian Demining 2018–2024” where clearance in Tiwinza was planned for 2018 covering five mined areas totaling 70,100m2.[15]
The clearance plan given for the Tiwinza square kilometer states that the operations will be carried out by the Ecuador-Peru Binational Humanitarian Demining Unit.[16] In 2017, all survey and clearance within the Tiwinza square kilometer was performed by this unit. They conducted clearance of 6,495m2 and destroyed 391 antipersonnel mines, cancelled 10,919m2 through non-technical survey, and reduced 7,332m2 through technical survey.[17]
[1] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 report (for calendar year 2018), Form D, p.9.
[2] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2018) Form D, p. 15.
[3] Ibid., pp. 15–16.
[4] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form D reports that there is 0.08km² but the plan is only for 0.06km².
[5] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2017, p. 52.
[6] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2017.
[7] Letter from Efraín Baus Palacios, Director of Neighborhood Relations and Sovereignty for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Human Mobility, President of the National Humanitarian Demining Center of Ecuador, to Amb. Patricia O’Brian, Permanent Representative of Ireland to the UN in Geneva, and Chair of the Article 5 Committee, Note No. 14839-DRVS/CENDESMI, Quito, 26 November 2016.
[8] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2017, p. 3.
[9] Ibid., Annex 1.
[10] Ibid., p. 95.
[11] Ibid., p. 25.
[12] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 report (for calendar year 2018), From D, p. 10.
[13] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2017, p. 45.
[14] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, Additional Information, 8 September 2017, p. 10.
[15] Peru’s Updated National Plan for Humanitarian Demining 2018–2024, May 2018, p. 17.
[16] Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline Extension Request, 2017, p. 40.
[17] Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2017), Form D.