Regional Meeting held in Banja Luka within Preparations for Upcoming Fifth Review Conference

In the organization of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Mine Action Centre and the Amputee Organization “UDAS”, with the support of the Government of the Republic of Srpska, on Tuesday, November 12, in the Administrative Center of the Government of the Republic of Srpska in Banja Luka, a regional meeting was held within the preparations for the upcoming Fifth Review Conference of the United Nations Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, storage, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines and on their destruction, under the name “Siem Reap-Angkor Summit – a world without mines”.

The meeting was organized in order to prepare the representatives of the countries of the region for the Fifth Review Conference, which will be held in Siam Reap, Cambodia, in the period from November 25 to 29.

At the meeting, the participants presented the current situation within their jurisdiction regarding mine action, the challenges faced by Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic of Serbia regarding mines and ERW, with an emphasis on the importance of the support of the international community in all mine action processes.

Conclusions, recommendations and joint initiatives were defined, which will be agreed upon and presented at the Fifth Review Conference in Cambodia.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Serbian Mine Action Centre, the BH Mine Action Centre, representatives of the Civil Protection of the Republic of Srpska, Civil Protection of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as representatives of the Association “Assistance. Advocacy. Access – Serbia” and representatives of the UDAS Organization,

The amputee organization UDAS from the Republic of Srpska, ITF Slovenia and the Beekeeping Academy of the Republic of Slovenia have been implementing the project “Beekeeping as a tool in empowering mine victims in Bosnia and Herzegovina“ since 2021.

The organizers have prepared a jar with honey produced and packed by mine victims of the Association of beekeepers of persons with disabilities and women “Pčelica”.