19 June 2003
Public-Private Partnerships Aid Demining in Armenia, Mozambique
(Demining envoy Bloomfield thanks Canadian, Armenian, U.S. donors) (1110)
The U.S. Special Representative of the President and Secretary of
State for Mine Action has thanked three valued partners --- the Humpty
Dumpty Institute, the Children of Armenia and SkyLink Aviation --- for
their contributions to clearing mines in Armenia, Mozambique and
elsewhere.
Lincoln Bloomfield told representatives of these organizations during
their visit to the U.S. State Department on June 18 that governments
alone "cannot solve the global landmine problem."
He pointed to the five-year collaboration of the State Department and
the Humpty Dumpty Institute, which resulted in the Institute raising
$600,000 for demining; the State Department leveraged that sum into
more than $1.5 million for mine clearance around the world.
Bloomfield, who is also assistant secretary of state for
political-military affairs, said the $100,000 check donated by the
Children of Armenia Fund would pay for more mine-detecting dogs that
"will become an integral part of the newly established Armenian Mine
Action Center's mine-clearing force."
He also accepted a $100,000 contribution by Canada's SkyLink Aviation,
which will be used for updated demining training and modern equipment
for Mozambican humanitarian deminers. With SkyLink's donation, the
State Department released another $150,000 for the Mozambique project.
Thanks to the generous donations by these three organizations,
Bloomfield said, both the Armenian and Mozambican governments "will be
better equipped to protect their citizens from landmines and return
more valuable land to productive use."
Following is the transcript of Bloomfield's remarks:
(begin text)
Supporting Landmine Clearance in Armenia and Mozambique
Lincoln P. Bloomfield, Jr., Special Representative of the President
and Secretary of State for Mine Action
Ceremony Acknowledging the Partnership Contributions of The Humpty
Dumpty Institute, Children of Armenia Fund, and SkyLink Aviation, Inc.
Treaty Room, Washington, D.C.
June 18, 2003
Welcome. I'm Lincoln Bloomfield, Special Representative of the
President and Secretary of State for Mine Action.
As such, I am responsible for helping the U.S. government to manage
the problems caused by landmines and other explosive remnants of war
that affect some 60 countries around the world, including Armenia and
Mozambique. The U.S. Humanitarian Mine Action Program has been active
in both of these countries for several years.
I am delighted to welcome everyone here today to witness our
appreciation for the vital support exhibited by our private partners
-- the Humpty Dumpty Institute, the Children of Armenia Fund' and
SkyLink Aviation -- whose contributions will make a real difference in
the fight to make Armenia and Mozambique mine-safe. These are a few of
the many public-private partners in humanitarian mine action we work
with over the course of a year and we are delighted to have an
opportunity to welcome them to Washington, D.C., and thank them in
person.
I am pleased to acknowledge the presence here of His Excellency
Armando Panguene, the Ambassador from Mozambique, and the Honorable
Armen Yedigarian, the Deputy Charge of Mission from the Embassy of
Armenia. Thank you both.
I want to acknowledge Michael Sonnenfeldt and Ralph Cwerman, Founder
and President respectively, of the Humpty Dumpty Institute, for their
vision in helping to bring us all together today. The State Department
and the Humpty Dumpty Institute have worked together for five years to
develop additional partnerships that engage the private sector and
civil society in humanitarian mine action. As Secretary of State
Powell has said, governments cannot solve the global landmine problem
by themselves.
Today's presentations are the latest examples of a productive Humpty
Dumpty Institute-State Department collaboration to remove landmines
through the development of public-private partnerships. Since 1998,
the Humpty Dumpty Institute has raised over $600,000 for demining.
Through the Humpty Dumpty Institute-State Department partnership, this
sum has been leveraged into more than $1.5 million for mine clearance
efforts around the world.
The Humpty Dumpty Institute was instrumental in helping to inspire
today's donations.
Today the Children of Armenia Fund will present a check for $100,000
to help pay for a team of mine detecting dogs for the government of
Armenia. This $100,000 represents donations from about 450 different
individuals -- a real example of how concerned citizens can join
together at the grass roots level and make a big difference. The
valuable dogs for which they have paid will become an integral part of
the newly established Armenian Mine Action Center's mine-clearing
force.
The Children of Armenia Fund's donation to the International Trust
Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance, or "ITF," based in
Slovenia, will be matched by the United States as proscribed by
legislation enacted by the U.S. Congress which has been so supportive
of mine action in general and the ITF in particular.
This contribution and the U.S. match will support the procurement of
additional dogs to complement Armenia's existing mine detection dog
capability -- a capability provided by the vision and hard work of yet
another of our partners, the Marshall Legacy Institute. We have worked
successfully with the Marshall Legacy Institute on other mine
detecting dog programs and look forward to working with them again in
the future.
Also today, SkyLink Aviation, a leading Canadian aircraft leasing
company, will present a check for $100,000 to fund demining training
and provision of modern demining equipment in Mozambique. Mozambique
is one of the countries where SkyLink has provided contract services
to the United Nations and donor nations involved in emergency,
peacekeeping and humanitarian undertakings.
As a result of SkyLink Aviation's donation, the Department of State
will release an additional $150,000 for this particular project,
bringing the total contribution to $250,000.
The combined U.S. and SkyLink Aviation contributions will help provide
Mozambican humanitarian deminers with additional training in current
clearance techniques and new equipment.
Together, these generous donations from the Children of Armenia Fund
and SkyLink Aviation embody two key attributes of the U.S.
Humanitarian Mine Action Program. First, they are the fruit of strong
and innovative public-private partnerships. Second, they strengthen
the capacity of national governments to remove persistent landmines on
their own territory. Thanks to today's generous private sector
participation, the governments of Armenia and Mozambique will be
better equipped to protect their citizens from landmines and return
more valuable land to productive use.
On behalf of the United States, I sincerely thank all of our valued
partners here today and take this opportunity to also express thanks
to all of the other partners with whom we've worked in mine action
over the past years for their vision, valuable support and humanity.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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