ANGOLA

Angola report 2001 [6]

OPERATIONS

Switch of emphasis because of the ongoing fights

Continued instability in Bengo Province, which culminated in a major military assault on the Provincial Capital of Caxito, prevented MgM from restarting demining operations. With agreement from Donors a switch in emphasis was made to enable MgM to support IDP resettlement programmes in Cunene Province in the South of Angola. This necessitated the transfer of the bulk of MgM's armoured demining and other support vehicles to the Operations Base South at Ondjiva. Men, dogs and some light equipment were moved by WFP flights. The rest of the equipment and vehicles were sent by sea from Luanda to Namibe Port, and then driven via Lubango to Ondjiva. This way the convoy avoided any 'hot spots' on the road between Luanda and Lubango.

Assessment missions and survey

During this period of flux MgM carried out assessment missions and surveys in Angola for possible future clearance missions. These included the clearance of an ammunition dump in Bairro Madeira to the southern end of the International Airport in Luanda, the Benguela Railway from Huambo, and infrastructure support for WFP, MINARS and the Provincial Government in Cunene.

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