More than one billion square metres of South Sudanese land and 26 thousand square kilometres of roads have been cleared of landmines and other explosive remnants of war, says an official.
Jorkuch Barach, the Chairperson of the National Mine Action Authority says South Sudan will remain in danger of landmines beyond 2020, Radio Bakhita reports.
The recent war has taken South Sudan backwards from becoming explosives free by 2020 as expected, the official says.
The landmines’ clearance has been achieved through the assistance of United Nations and other partners, Barach discloses.
Dr Martin Elia Lomurö, the Minister of Cabinet Affairs hails the mine action authority and UN agencies for freeing South Sudan from reasonable mass of land for settlement and road transport.
Over 1.7 million Internally Displaced Persons and 65 thousand refugees in neighbouring countries cannot be resettled without clearance of their land from landmines, says Eugene Ewusu, the UN Resident Coordinator.
The United Nations and the government will continue to assist communities at risk of landmines, Ewusu says.
The mine action authority has recorded 2.8 million South Sudanese as recipients of Mine Risk Education.