The event was organized in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Union Forces for Bosnia and Herzegovina, which have been monitoring and supporting the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Center and mine action operations for many years ahead.

The ceremony was attended by a large number of representatives of domestic and international institutions and organizations.

All guests had the opportunity to watch the film “Mine-free country until 2027”, in which it was shown how much we have done to make a country free of mines, and about the importance of the Convention on the prohibition of the use, production, transfer and storage of anti-personnel mines .

Saša Obradović, Director of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Center, pointed out that this institution has undergone several changes and reorganizations so far. From the agency established with the help of the United Nations, through entity centers, to the central structure at the state level, which still exists in the same form and with the same responsibility to ensure planning, coordination, and quality assurance of mine action operations.

With much efforts, in cooperation with partner organizations, all known mine-contaminated areas have been identified.

Over 3,500 km2 was returned to the safe use by the population and business entities, primarily through the effective action of the teams of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Center, while the rest was done by the operational teams of demining organizations in the field.

Bosnia and Herzegovina was among the first to sign the Convention on the Prohibition of Anti-Personnel Landmines. Document was ratified in 1998. The convention entered into force on March 1, 1999, when we became a member of the Convention and assumed responsibility for demining, destruction of stockpiles, assistance to victims, and advocasy.

The new deadline specifies that our country will be cleared of mines and explosive devices left over from the war by 2027, which as a country we have the potential to reach.

Compared to previous years, Bosnia and Herzegovina now have a more rational and different approach to deal with the remaining problem, and more developed technology for operational activities.

Our country is trying to invest more in this process, but donor assistance is still of great importance, in order to reach a country free of mines and other explosive remnants of war.

In honor of the efforts made so far and providing assistance for the removal of mines in our country, all donors received certificates of appreciation.