The Netherlands

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Activity 29162 - HALO Humanitarian Mine Action and Cluster Ammunition activities 2016-2020 Progress Report, 2018, Afghanistan 1 January 2018 - 31 December 2018 Total grant: USD 6,135,442

HALO staff conducting community liaison together with DMAC representatives in Pechga village, Ruy Du Ab district, Samangan province, October 2018.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents ...... 2 Executive Summary ...... 3 Country Context ...... 4 Inputs ...... 6 Personnel ...... 6 Equipment...... 6 Outputs and Outcomes ...... 7 Impact ...... 12 Sustainability of Outcomes ...... 13 Monitoring, evaluation and learning ...... 14 Gender Equality ...... 15 Coordination with National Authorities and Local Partners ...... 16 Innovation ...... 17 Risks ...... 18 Political/Security ...... 18 Security/Operations ...... 18 Conclusion ...... 18 Annex A: Case Study ...... 20 Annex C: Metrics Table with Outputs as reported in IATI ...... 23 Annex D: Metrics Table with Outcomes as reported in IATI ...... 25

2 www.halotrust.org

Executive Summary

With assistance from the Dutch government, this project offers immediate life-saving protection from the threat of mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) to Afghan civilians exposed to the physical and psychological impact of these devices. This report outlines the progress made between 1 January and 31 December 2018. During this period, HALO conducted mine clearance, explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), survey and mine risk education (MRE) in six provinces of Afghanistan.

HALO’s activities were conducted predominately by staff recruited from mine-impacted communities, providing employment on a long-term basis to the rural poor. During this period, Dutch funding supported the deployment of 19,5 manual clearance teams, one mechanical clearance team, and one community outreach and risk education (CORE) team for 12 months. The teams achieved the following results during the reporting period:

 1,191,053m2 of land was cleared and released to rural communities

 184 anti-personnel (AP) mines, five anti-tank (AT) mines, 36 items of unexploded ordnance (UXO), 250 items of stray ammunition (SA) and 23 items small arms ammunition (SAA) were located and destroyed

 6,912 men, women, boys and girls benefited directly and 16,228 men, women, boys and girls benefited indirectly from clearance and EOD activities

 467 MRE sessions were delivered to 9,742 men, women, boys and girls

 29 tasks were re-surveyed, cancelling 315,482 m2 of land previously recorded as being contaminated

The project has the following intended outcomes: 1. Enhanced security and stability, reduced risk of death and injury to individuals and communities 2. Enhanced resilience of vulnerable groups through improved access to resources, livelihoods and socioeconomic reconstruction The majority of land cleared in 2018 will be used for grazing, which is one of the most important sources of livelihood in rural Afghanistan. Improved household income derived through employment as deminers as well as access to safe grazing and agricultural land contributed to increased human security, enhanced resilience to economic and natural shocks, and reduced likelihood of men participating in insurgency or illegal activities in communities targeted under this project. This directly contributes to NL Policy Framework goal 1 and sub-goals 1.1 and 1.3.

HALO Afghanistan also received Emergency Funding for Clearance of Abandoned Improvised Mines. This project will be reported on separately.

www.halotrust.org 3

Country Context

Afghanistan has been in protracted conflict for almost forty years, which has a devastating effect on the country and its people. The conflict, fuelled by poor governance, corruption, weak rule of law and a struggling national economy hampers human development and depletes the country’s coping mechanisms. Armed conflict continues to destroy lives and livelihoods, causing 5,122 civilian casualties (1,692 deaths and 3,430 injured)1 in the first six months of 2018 alone, of which more than a third were women and children. The leading cause of these civilian casualties are improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Table illustrating the number of civilian deaths and injuries between 2009 and 2018, UNAMA.

The fragile political, economic and security situation in the country led to Afghanistan becoming one of the world’s most complex humanitarian emergencies. According to UNOCHA, over one million people live in new and prolonged displacement, 3.3 million people are in need of lifesaving assistance, approximately 39 percent of the population live below the poverty line, an estimated 10 million people have limited or no access to essential health services, as many as 3.5 million children are out of school, and some 1.9 million people are severely food insecure2. Since 2001, international aid efforts led to considerable improvement, but chronic needs still persist.

This humanitarian situation causes many Afghans to flee their homes in search of safety and economic opportunities. According to Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, there were 1,286,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) in Afghanistan at the end of 2017. In the first six months of 2018, 168,000 people were internally displaced due to conflict3. Additionally, Afghan refugees are increasingly being expatriated from Pakistan and Iran back to Afghanistan, after having lived there for decades. According to IOM, 800,124 people returned to Afghanistan in 20184. Returnees and families fleeing conflict are particularly

1 https://unama.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unama_poc_midyear_update_2018_15_july_english.pdf 2https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/sites/www.humanitarianresponse.info/files/documents/files/afg_2018_humanitar ian_needs_overview_5.pdf 3 http://www.internal-displacement.org/countries/afghanistan 4 https://afghanistan.iom.int/sites/default/files/Reports/iom_afghanistan-return_of_undocumented_afghans- _situation_report_23_-_29_dec_2018_003.pdf

4 www.halotrust.org

vulnerable to mines/ERW, as they often have no knowledge of where contaminated areas are found and may be forced into using dangerous land to generate livelihoods and address immediate water and food needs. Under this project, 1,016 IDPs and returnees benefitted directly from mine clearance activities and 2,903 benefited indirectly.

Another factor contributing to a growing number of IDPs and refugees is the drought, which led to 81,000 new displacements between January and June in 2018. Since the majority of rural families in the country depend on agriculture, casual labour and raising livestock to sustain their livelihoods, the drought significantly impacts a large part of the population of Afghanistan. According to UNOCHA, the 2018 drought affected more than two-thirds of Afghans. It has reduced incomes by half, caused serious health issues and prompted negative coping mechanisms5, such as eating fewer meals, reducing portion sizes, and eating less preferred or cheaper food. Blocked access to agricultural land only exacerbates the problem and puts additional strain on already struggling rural families.

562 km2 of land in Afghanistan still remains contaminated with landmines and other ERW – a legacy of decades of fighting. Their presence blocks access to agricultural, grazing, communal and residential land, thus limiting the sources of livelihoods in rural communities. The families in the communities targeted under this project are primarily subsistence farmers and herders, consuming the majority of what they produce and selling the excess not required for household consumption. Safe access to agricultural and grazing land is vital to these communities in order to sustain themselves. However, economic desperation sometimes forces mine impacted communities to utilise contaminated land for grazing and cultivation of crops, placing them at a higher risk of mine/ERW related accidents.

Finally, the Dutch government showed their support to mine action in Afghanistan by visiting HALO Afghanistan’s activities a number of times in 2018. In June 2018, Minister of Foreign Affairs Stef Blok visited a HALO task in Marmul near Mazar-i Sharif city. In November 2018, Deputy Head of Mission Hans Akerboom visited HALO’s headquarters in Kabul and our central demolition site where he witnessed a controlled demolition.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Stef Blok visiting a HALO task in Marmul.

5https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/ocha_afghanistan_monthly_humanitarian_bulletin_january_2019.p df

www.halotrust.org 5

Inputs

Personnel

In 2018, funding by the Netherlands provided employment for an average of 172 qualified Afghan staff. The number over the project varies per month based on how many demining teams, operations and support staff are allocated to a donor at a given time. At its peak, 245 staff were funded under this contract in 2018, of which 136 were deminers. 19.5 manual clearance teams of six people (a total of 108 people), one Mine clearance undertaken in a residential area in Umar Zayee village, Mehterlam district, Laghman province, January 2018. mechanical demining team of six people and one CORE team with EOD capacity of five people were deployed for 12 months. On average, 25 support staff and 15 senior operational staff supported these teams on a monthly basis. Equipment

As a result of existing program equipment stocks, there was no requirement to purchase high value capital equipment. The only major purchase with a value exceeding 5,000 USD were 220 visors. Other vital demining equipment such as body armour and detectors currently used by Dutch funded demining teams were purchased on previous contracts funded by the Netherlands and other donors.

Area of activities under this project

6 www.halotrust.org

Outputs and Outcomes

The following paragraphs outline how Dutch funding to HALO contributed to the Sustainable Development Goals and subsequently the Ministry’s Human Security Sub-Goals as described in the Grant policy framework for the Mine Action and Cluster Munitions Programme 2016-2020.6

Outcome 1: Security and stability is enhanced, risk of death and injury to individuals and communities reduced

According to the above mentioned document, ‘the Dutch Programme aims to enlarge the physical security of people as well as their ability to use their land free of fear to lose a limb or their lives or loved ones’. HALO’s primary activity under this project is mine clearance. The very nature of this work helps increase human security and stability. Future accidents within identified minefields and the corresponding loss of life and human suffering is immediately prevented after clearance is complete. Dutch funding allowed demining teams to clear 1,191,053 m2 of contaminated land in Kabul, Laghman, Parwan, Samangan, and Balkh provinces. Clearance ensured immediate protection to 6,912 beneficiaries directly and to 16,228 beneficiaries indirectly. Additionally, 315,482 m2 of land previously recorded as being contaminated were cancelled and removed from the national Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) database after a careful resurvey process. This allowed communities to put land into productive use without any fear of accidents. Likewise, precious mine action time and resources were saved and will be used more productively to clear land with confirmed contamination. 315,482 m2 of cancelled land amounts to approximately six minefields based on the average size of minefields cleared under this project and is equivalent to 10.7% of the total area of minefield cleared by Dutch teams since the beginning of the project.

Land cleared during this reporting period was predominantly contaminated by anti-personnel (AP) mines, which are designed to maim people. 184 anti-personnel mines were found and destroyed during the reporting period, potentially preventing 184 accidents. Mine accidents have grave and long-lasting economic, social and psychological impacts on the victims and their families.

Survivors of mine accidents are usually permanently disabled and require long term care, physical rehabilitation as well as psycho-social and economic support for the rest of their lives. ‘The suffering [anti- personnel mines] cause is particularly horrific, and war surgeons consider mine injuries among the worst they ever have to treat.’7 This is because landmines inflict injuries that are much more severe than those caused by other conventional weapons. When a person steps on a buried anti-personnel mine, the explosion drives soil, grass, gravel, metal and plastic fragments of the mine as well as shattered bone up into the muscles. As a result, the victim usually requires amputation and multiple operations. As such, the treatment of mine victims typically requires more medical resources than other types of injuries. In a

6 https://www.government.nl/topics/grant-programmes/mine-action-and-cluster-munitions-programme-2016-2020 7 https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/assets/files/other/caring-landmine-victims-0863.pdf

www.halotrust.org 7

country where 1.2 million people lack access to the most basic health services, providing mine victims with adequate care is a significant challenge.

HALO staff member explaining the markings that delineate a minefield to a local community member in Chenar Gai village Feroz Nakhchir district, Samangan province, November 2018. After emergency assistance is provided, a mine victim needs to go through a long rehabilitation process in order to regain mobility.

‘A child that steps on an anti-personnel mine today may need up to 35 prostheses in his or her lifetime.’8

Reintegration into the social and economic life of their community is another vital need of mine victims. Survivors and their families are generally among the furthest left behind in mine-affected communities. Many post-conflict countries including Afghanistan do not have sufficient physical rehabilitation facilities and socio-economic reintegration systems to assist mine victims to overcome the physical and emotional trauma of a mine accident and rebuild their lives. As a result, landmine victims are often perceived as a caring burden to the family, as their ability to generate an income and support household needs is considerably reduced while they may simultaneously require costly medical care. Households affected by mine accidents may be unable to meet their basic needs and their food security, nutrition, and educational status may suffer.

Through funding the removal of landmines, the government of the Netherlands has contributed to preventing such devastating accidents for hundreds of families.

Additionally, providing 475 mine risk education (MRE) sessions to 9,742 beneficiaries has also contributed to preventing mine and ERW accidents in areas where mines are still present. Awareness of the risks posed by mines and other ERW was increased in susceptible communities by deploying a mixed-gender Dutch funded CORE team to provide MRE sessions. The messages conveyed during these sessions aimed to

8 ibid

8 www.halotrust.org

promote safe behaviour amongst the participants and reduce the likelihood of injury or death caused by mine or other ERW accidents. Pre- and post-MRE surveys conducted by the team determined that 99% of beneficiaries demonstrated increased knowledge. This indicator is based on the survey participants answering one or more question correctly in the post-MRE survey.

EOD callouts conducted under this contract also play an important role in reducing the number of accidents from explosive ordnance. Explosive remnants of war, including grenades, mortars, rockets, projectiles, etc. left over from fighting can explode decades later merely by being touched or kicked. Civilians often find such items and pick them up, which occasionally causes the Explosive items reported during a call-out in Chenar Gai village, Feroz Nakhchir district, Samangan province, November 2018. item to detonate. HALO’s efforts to safely remove and dispose of these items before they are able to injure or kill contributes significantly to improving human security and the protection of civilians. During the reporting period, HALO responded to 16 call-outs, destroying one anti-personnel mine, eight items of unexploded ordnance, as shown above, two items of stray ammunition and five sub- munitions. These items are also used by armed opposition groups to make improvised explosive devices (IEDs). In 2018, there were an average of 111 civilian injuries or deaths every month in Afghanistan caused by all types of unexploded ordnance, with improvised explosive devices accounting for 54% of these casualties. By removing explosive remnants of war, HALO reduces the number of such conflict commodities.

Outcome 2: Enhanced resilience of vulnerable groups through improved access to resources, livelihoods and socioeconomic reconstruction

The presence of mines and ERW also blocks access to agricultural, grazing, foraging, residential and communal land. Mined land cannot safely be used to grow crops, graze livestock, or collect firewood and construction materials, such as stones and grass. Mine contamination limits agricultural output, minimises the size of livestock Young men gathering firewood right next to mined land being cleared by HALO in flocks, and suppresses vital livelihood Chenar Gai village, Feroz Nakhchi district, Samangan province, November 2018. opportunities. As such, mine contamination has a serious impact on households’ ability to support themselves, build buffers against economic shocks and natural disasters, and maintain adequate levels of food security and nutrition.

www.halotrust.org 9

Mine clearance unblocks agricultural and grazing land, leading to the prevention of animal accidents as well as the promotion of livelihood resilience. Clearance conducted under this project in 2018 provided vulnerable populations, including IDPs and returnees with new sources of income and livelihoods. This was achieved through improving access to 1,191,053m2 of grazing, agricultural and residential land and providing secure employment for an average of 136 Afghan deminers.

2 75% of the 1,191,053m of contaminated land released through mine clearance in 2018 will be used for grazing. Animal husbandry and farming are the most important sources of livelihood in rural Afghanistan and make up the backbone of the country’s economy. Livestock is an important asset in Afghan households and is used for both household

A young man herding his sheep close to land being cleared by Dutch funded consumption and market sale of animals HALO teams in Ghozgay village, Khaki Jabbar district, Kabul province, June 2018. and animal products. The most recent Afghanistan Living Conditions Survey data shows that 38.6% of households in Afghanistan own one or more cattle. 9 Likewise, over 40% of households hold chickens, which is particularly important for women as they are usually responsible for tending poultry and may also reap direct benefits from poultry products. The Kuchis, a nomadic pastoral tribe, own even more animals. Goats are owned by 71.6% of Kuchi households and sheep by 81.6%. Under this project, 2,020 Kuchis directly benefitted from mine clearance activities, allowing them to access additional grazing land. Most importantly, only 48% of livestock owners report that they have sufficient access to pasture land and only 32% of surveyed Kuchi nomads reported having sufficient access to grazing land. As such, releasing grazing land has a direct and significant impact on livestock owners, which in part explains why 100% of direct beneficiaries surveyed reported improved livelihoods thanks to Dutch funded clearance activities in 2018.

13% of the land cleared during the reporting period will be used for agricultural activities. The presence of landmines prevents rural communities from cultivating part or all of their land, which depresses food security and lessens potential income from selling at local markets. Clearing agricultural land enables rural populations to sow more crops and increase harvests. As such, agricultural land released through clearance, leads to the promotion of livelihood resilience through increased access to resources and income. The remaining 12% of the land will be used for housing.

9 http://cso.gov.af/Content/files/ALCS/ALCS%202016-17%20Analysis%20report%20-%20Full%20report23%20_09%202018- ilovepdf-compressed.pdf

10 www.halotrust.org

Investing in rural communities also reduces incentives for community members to participate in Afghanistan’s ongoing conflict. Employment as deminers provides men of fighting age with sustainable sources of income as well as skills development that benefit the community at large and increase prospects for future employment in the humanitarian mine action sector and beyond. As such, the socio- economic opportunities facilitated under this project ensures young men from vulnerable communities are less likely to resort to illegal activities such as narcotic trafficking or joining armed opposition groups to sustain their household needs. The Dutch funding in 2018 allowed for HALO to employ an average of 136 deminers. The continuity of funding throughout four years provides stability for the deminers and their families. This is of particular importance in Khaki Jabbar district of Kabul province, where Dutch funded teams worked on clearing six minefields in 2018. The majority of the district is under Taliban control and having a legal, well respected and stable income there provides a viable alternative to joining the Taliban for young men.

A construction project implemented to restore a historical site in Paghman district of Kabul province, May 2018. HALO cleared this land prior to the start of the project. Finally, HALO Afghanistan previously under-reported area cancelled by Non-Technical Survey (NTS) for 2018. As illustrated below, Dutch funding enabled the resurveying of 29 tasks rather than one. No task cancelled in its entirety, however, the programme did manage to safely cancel 315,482 m2. This is the equivalent of an average of six minefields and will enable considerable cost savings in the future as this area will not need to undergo clearance.

Metrics revision for 2018 Previously reported in 2018 metrics 2018 Actual Tasks Resurveyed by NTS(#) 1 29 Area Resurveyed by NTS(m2) 2,363,645 2,363,645 Tasks cancelled by NTS(#) 28 0 Area cancelled NTS (m2) 0 315,482 Tasks remaining after NTS(#) 0 29

Area remaining after NTS(m2) 0 2,048,163

www.halotrust.org 11

Impact

This project contributed to increasing the resilience of mine/ERW impacted communities to cope with shocks, provided sustained conditions for human security and facilitated inclusive development. Through humanitarian mine action, this project contributed to strengthening Afghanistan’s long-term stability and development. This intervention is aligned with the national strategy towards a mine free Afghanistan by 2023 as part of the government’s obligation to the Ottawa Mine Ban Treaty and funding provided by the Netherlands is directly contributing to reaching this goal.

The removal of landmines and other ERW during the reporting period increased the resilience of target communities to cope with economic shocks. Improved access to grazing and agricultural land increases agricultural outputs and flock sizes, which increases the amount of food products available for household use and sale on the market. This in turn allows families to build food reserves, which can be tapped into when natural disasters, conflict, movement of population or any other shock impacts the availability of food. As such, productive use of previously contaminated land helps address issues of poverty, malnutrition and food insecurity and contributes to ending poverty as stipulated under SDG 1 as well as zero hunger listed under SDG 2.

Activities carried out under this project also provide sustained conditions for human security. According to the NL Policy Framework Goal 1, ‘People’s basic need for safety overshadows all other needs (see Maslow’s hierarchy of needs). People who feel safe and secure will themselves invest more in development and stability and will be less inclined to join warring parties.’ The uniqueness of landmines and other ERW is that unlike some other human security challenges, they cannot cause any further human suffering once they are removed and destroyed. The risk of accidents in cleared minefields is reduced to zero and the corresponding loss of life and human suffering is immediately prevented after clearance is complete. This creates permanent protection from mine and ERW injuries. Additionally, the recruitment of Afghan staff under this project increases resilience and promotes conditions for human security. By recruiting deminers from all parts of the country, including from mine impacted communities targeted under this project, HALO provides men of fighting age with a sustainable source of income as well as skill development that increases prospects for future/other employment. As a result, men are less likely to resort to illegal activities such as narcotic trafficking or insurgency to sustain their household needs. The employment of national staff also directly contributes to furthering SDG 8 on decent work and economic growth as mine action provides deminers with productive employment and transferable skills, improving access to the labour market.

12 www.halotrust.org

Dutch funded activities also contributed to facilitating inclusive development. The project involved local communities in all stages of the humanitarian mine clearance process which ensured the need of vulnerable populations, including women and girls, returning refugees and the internally displaced were taken into consideration. Pre- and post-clearance meetings promoted peaceful, just and inclusive societies, thereby directly Dutch funded HALO staff consulting with local residents to identify mined areas in Rafak village, Baghlane Jaded district, Baghlan province, October contributing to SDG 16. The participatory 2018. project design process utilized by HALO and the inclusion of mine-affected communities in the decision- making process strengthened national ownership and social inclusion. Close collaboration with the Directorate of Mine Action Coordination (DMAC), United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) and other national and international implementing partners helped develop effective national capacities, accountable institutions and ownership of mine action activities in Afghanistan. Likewise, clearance facilitated the access of other humanitarian actors. Mine-impacted villages are often excluded from NGO and governmental development projects due to fears over staff safety, a lack of usable agricultural land for rural development projects, and the difficulty of implementing infrastructure projects such as irrigation canals or electricity projects across land contaminated by mines. This causes further marginalization for villages already marked by a history of conflict and struggling with the legacy of landmines. After clearance is complete, government and non-governmental development organizations are able to access the targeted villages to conduct thorough needs assessments and develop projects using the cleared land. An example of this can be seen on page 11, where a reconstruction project of a historical site is taking place after HALO cleared contaminated land. Furthermore, the use of a mixed- gender CORE team enables women and girls to participate in the community-led, inclusive process that takes place to define and assess mined areas before clearance begins. When an all-male CORE team is used to conduct the pre-clearance survey, women’s voices are rarely heard and they are therefore typically excluded from the process of task prioritization and planning.

Finally, this multi-annual contract providing sustained funding over four years enables HALO to provide income and financial stability to our deminers in regions were economic security is rare. It also allows HALO to make long term strategic plans to clear entire communities from contamination, which enables them to recover from decades of mine related challenges. Having a sustained level of funding over a number of years also allows HALO to save costs associated with mobilisation, deployment, demobilisation and other start and end of project costs related to yearly contracts.

Sustainability of Outcomes

This project is designed with sustainability in mind. The impact of the project will be long-lasting, as the safe land provided for beneficiaries can be used in perpetuity. The impact of released land will increase

www.halotrust.org 13

over time as livelihoods opportunities contribute to stability amongst target communities and the prevention of conflict at a local level, through alternative socio-economic opportunities for young men from rural villages. Sustainable increases in livelihood opportunities directly contribute to increasing human security on a long-term basis in target communities.

The project will also facilitate sustainable sources of income for deminers and other field staff through their continued employment. Staff salaries will be reinvested into vulnerable communities, translating directly into increased well-being for their families. Once this project ends, HALO will deploy these teams using continued Dutch or other donor funding for as long as possible to ensure livelihoods benefits of stable employment remain sustainable.

HALO also anticipates the knowledge of risks and dangers of ERWs gained during MRE sessions to be shared by participants with their families and the wider community. Finally, the proposed project will also help strengthen institutional capacity of the Government of Afghanistan to meet its strategic aims by contributing towards Afghanistan’s National Strategic Mine Action Plan 2016-2020, and its commitments under its extension request to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention.

Monitoring, evaluation and learning

HALO has a dedicated internal monitoring team that conducts internal quality assurance (QA) checks at all HALO tasks. Progress of this project was monitored on a regular basis and the results evaluated by both internal and external QA teams. The internal team conducted QA visits to all tasks and ensured HALO’s standard operating procedures (SOPs) were met. A total of 174 QA checks were conducted by the internal monitoring team. 165 checks resulted in conformity reports, indicating that no SOP breaches were found. Nine QA checks resulted in observations, which were discussed by the internal monitoring team as well as operational staff and properly addressed. HALO activities are also subject to external QA checks conducted by DMAC through regular visits of all HALO clearance sites. DMAC completed 23 QA checks during the reporting period.

A combination of quantitative, qualitative and participatory data collection methods including household surveys, minefield assessments and pre- and post-MRE surveys were used to collect reliable socio- economic data and identify community needs to inform programming. HALO is able to identify any changes in the socio-economic situation and adapt operations where necessary. Additionally, HALO’s community survey process allows beneficiaries to comment on how community liaison has been conducted, its convenience and its utility, helping make M&E less intrusive and more constructive for all stakeholders, particularly in areas where access to women and girls is challenging. Regular progress reports on the project are produced, for which data is collected and managed at HALO’s Kabul HQ by an experienced team of GIS and data specialists, and monitored using a tracking sheet. In addition to internal monitoring, HALO’s senior operations management team in Afghanistan are supported by senior UK based staff, with regular visits from global specialists in finance, operations management and technical specialists.

14 www.halotrust.org

HALO has an excellent safety record and typically receives full conformity reports from DMAC’s external QA teams. When accidents occur, an internal investigation is immediately carried out by HALO senior staff under the supervision of DMAC. A full accident report is produced by senior national and expatriate staff, discussed at HALO’s HQ, and a plan drawn up to address any areas of weakness. No accidents occurred during the reporting period.

Gender Equality

Decades of war and violence in Afghanistan and the resulting unstable political and economic situation has had a particularly severe impact on women. Cultural perceptions of gender roles also pose a serious challenge to gender equality in the country. According to the National Action Plan for the Women of Afghanistan, ‘the women of Afghanistan are among the worst off in the world, both in comparison to Afghan men and to women of most countries. Their situation is particularly poor in the areas of health, deprivation of rights, protection against violence, economic productivity, education, literacy, and public participation.’

The Gender Inequality Index for 2018 ranked Afghanistan 168th out of the 189 assessed countries, placing it amongst the countries with the greatest gender inequality. Cultural and social restrictions placed on women and girls, such as attitudes about education for girls, seclusion of women, and limited movement outside of the home, make it difficult to improve gender equality in Afghanistan. Likewise, security risks, socio-cultural norms, traditional perception of female’s roles in the household, as well as a lack of job opportunities often result in women being excluded from the labour market. Female employment in Afghanistan is particularly low, with only 29 percent of the women working professionally outside of their homes. Additionally, gender-based violence is prevalent and forced and/or underage marriage remains common practice in Afghanistan. These factors contribute to gender disempowerment and a cycle of poverty across Afghanistan.

Exclusion of women from public life, lack of education and cultural perceptions of gender roles discourage female employment, especially for field positions and limit access to female beneficiaries. Despite these challenges, HALO is committed to increasing female participation at all levels of the organisation and ensuring that our activities benefit women, men, boys and girls equally. In Afghanistan, it has not been possible to recruit women as deminers, unlike other countries where HALO operates. To ensure gender mainstreaming is incorporated into HALO’s activities, under this project as well as in those funded by other donors, women are recruited and trained to work as members of CORE and MRE teams. As Afghan culture and values discourage women from travelling without being accompanied by a male relative, HALO recruits couples to work under a ‘mahram structure’, in which all women in CORE teams work side- by-side with a member of their family, usually a brother or husband.

The CORE team funded by the Dutch Government has one female staff member. The inclusion of women in such teams provides new employment opportunities they may otherwise have been excluded from, and allows women to generate sustainable sources of income and improve the human security of their households. The gender balanced teams also have positive impacts on female beneficiaries in mine- impacted communities. Due to socio-cultural norms constraining mixed gender interaction, all-male MRE

www.halotrust.org 15

teams struggle to reach female populations, causing women and girls to be excluded from MRE sessions and being denied the right of access to life-saving information. HALO’s mixed gender teams reported that women provide less precise information on the history of conflict in the area, details of mine/ERW-related accidents, and the economic assets the household possesses. Women in rural areas claim they are poorly informed about the outside world. A confirmation of this is their anxiety levels related to contamination by mines/ERW, which is higher than the men’s, and often stay higher even after a mine action is complete. This information is key for the operational efficiency of mine action activities, as it indicates that women need to be approached directly or through an effective communication channel to ensure that they receive and share information.

The inclusion of female personnel facilitates such contact with women and girls, permitting teams to provide MRE and accurate information to all gender groups residing in proximity to hazardous areas. During the reporting period, 3,495 women and girls attended MRE sessions. Without the female staff they would have probably been excluded from these life-saving information sessions, depending on the community. Additionally, 3,364 women and girls directly and 8,066 women and girls indirectly benefitted from mine clearance activities.

HALO continues to be involved in national initiatives to promote gender mainstreaming in humanitarian mine action, including participation in the Mine Action Programme of Afghanistan (MAPA) Gender Mainstreaming Strategy. As part of this process, HALO’s male and female gender focal points attend regular DMAC/UNMAS gender mainstreaming meetings. HALO’s gender focal point team implements the program’s gender strategy.

Coordination with National Authorities and Local Partners

HALO closely collaborates with the Directorate of Mine Action Coordination (DMAC) and Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority (ANDMA) to support progress towards Afghanistan’s Anti- Personnel Mine Ban Treaty obligations, and strengthen coordination between national authorities and implementing partners. DMAC is responsible for leadership and coordination of implementing partners, managing the Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) database, monitoring and evaluation of all mine action activities in Afghanistan and adherence to national standards. By supporting DMAC in its work, HALO is supporting the process of DMAC taking full ownership of mine action in Afghanistan.

HALO attends monthly stakeholder meetings held by DMAC on national and regional levels. These meetings bring together implementing partners and donors to discuss achievements, challenges, access, security and other relevant events or funding opportunities. HALO activities are also subject to external quality assurance checks conducted by DMAC through regular visits of HALO clearance sites to ensure operations are in accordance to IMAS Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Under this contract, HALO attended 40 coordination meetings with national and regional mine action authorities. HALO also liaised with the district governor, the local police departments and the local shura.

16 www.halotrust.org

Finally, HALO echoes the importance of sharing information, not only within the mine action sector but also with the wider humanitarian field inclusive of our development partners. Staff within the programme support unit attend meetings with the mine-action sub-cluster, the protection cluster, the food security and agriculture cluster, the humanitarian access groups and other relevant meetings of the NGO group ACBAR.

Innovation

HALO Afghanistan is committed to being at the forefront of innovation within the humanitarian mine action sector. In 2018, HALO Afghanistan worked on technology innovation, process innovation and capacity building.

In terms of technology innovation, in March 2019, HALO began trialling two new detectors with the potential to substantially speed up clearance of anti-tank mines. The results of this trial will be particularly important for clearance of minimum metal anti-tank mines, which are very hard to detect using standard metal detectors. Likewise, HALO continually seeks ways to increase efficiency and save financial resources, thus providing a better value for money for the donor. For example, HALO recently started using the heat created by making tea in mobile camp kitchens to warm up the water tanks that are used by deminers for hygiene. This allowed HALO to discard of water boilers in showers.

Process innovation wise, HALO continually works on improving its data collection and process systems, among other things. Staff deployed on this project received training on how to use Fulcrum, a form building and data collection platform. Fulcrum enables fast data collection that can be immediately uploaded to HALO’s database, which not only improves efficiency by removing the need to manually process data, but also clean and easily manipulated data allows for more sophisticated analysis of productivity and effective clearance methodology. Use of Fulcrum on this project helped develop data collection practices in Afghanistan’s mine action sector as all information was shared with DMAC.

HALO is also dedicated to building its own capacity and that of the entire sector. Attending DMAC’s technical working groups (for example on abandoned improvised mines and mine risk education) as well as standards development meetings and sharing HALO’s data with the sector, insights and extensive experience contributes to raising MAPA’s capacity. Sharing our analysis of data with the aim of improving clearance and survey across the sector is also beneficial for the entire sector.

HALO likewise seeks innovative solutions to ensure operations are environmentally friendly. For example, solar panels were installed in HALO’s main central training camp in Shakadara, which hosts an estimated 300 staff at a given time during the operational cycle. The solar panel system installed provides the camp with longs hours of light and will allow detectors and radio batteries to be recharged using solar energy. Electricity in the training camp was previously generated with the use of a fuel consuming generator. Since powering the camp with solar power, HALO has been able to save an estimated 400 litters of fuel each month, thereby significantly reducing HALO’s carbon footprint.

www.halotrust.org 17

Finally, by deploying women as female MRE assessors, HALO not only builds upon the professional careers of women in mine action, but also contributes to the commitment of the Mine Action Programme of Afghanistan (MAPA) to ensure all gender groups participate in its work. In the Afghan context, employment of female staff and their involvement in mine clearance activities remains extremely unusual; whilst some operators have used mixed-gender MRE teams in the past, this is infrequent and it is rare to find female members of staff involved in pre-clearance survey activities. This sets an example for other implementing partners to follow of successfully incorporating women into mine action.

The above are some of the examples demonstrating that HALO Afghanistan continually seeks ways to increase efficiency, capacity and sustainability, offering greater value for money.

Risks

Political/Security

No major political or security risks materialized. Khaki Jabbar district of Kabul province was the only relatively insecure district in the area of operations during the reporting period. The district is mostly held by the Taliban and occasional fighting occurred, but it did not impact HALO’s activities. HALO continues to prioritize community liaison to mitigate against insecurities affecting mine clearance. In response to higher security threats and protests following recent attacks, HALO reviewed expatriate accommodation and movement around Kabul to ensure appropriate measures are in place.

Security/Operations

HALO operations staff have continued to obtain permissions from community leaders maintaining respect for presence of HALO personnel and equipment. Clearance work plans are flexible and operations agile to allow teams to be redeployed elsewhere.

Conclusion

Activities funded by the Netherlands during the reporting period directly contributed to improved human security, increased resilience and inclusive development in rural communities of Afghanistan. Mine clearance and EOD activities prevented further loss of life and ensured the amount of ammunition available to AOGs to use against the government or civilians is reduced. The life-saving messages conveyed in MRE sessions guaranteed human security has improved by promoting safe behaviour, reducing ERW accidents and allowing communities to feel safer. The land released through survey and clearance this year enhances the resilience of marginalized communities by offering improved sources of livelihoods as well as employment opportunities. The release of cleared land and employment opportunities contributes to alleviating poverty, facilitates resettlement and social and economic development in rural areas and improves the ability of targeted communities to cope with natural and economic shocks.

18 www.halotrust.org

Demining is an activity that strengthens the nexus between humanitarian response and development: responding to protect civilians from legacy mines and ERW also creates space for development to commence. Linkages between mine action and development partnerships promote maximized impact for beneficiaries and sustainability of community livelihoods. A partnership approach is currently being rolled out in other donor contracts, and may be a next step consideration for future contracts/proposals to the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Report submitted by: Tim Kreuk Date: 30 April 2019

The HALO Trust Carronfoot, Thornhill Dumfries DG3 5BF United Kingdom

Contact Phone No: +44 (0) 1848 1848 331100 Contact E-mail: [email protected]

www.halotrust.org 19

Annex A: Case Study

‘My name is Habib Rahman. I live in Ghandaki village, Marmul district of Balkh province with my wife, four sons and three daughters. My entire extended family lives in the same village as well. I am a famer, and I support my family by cultivating agricultural land and raising livestock. During the war between the Mujahedeen and the Soviets, Mujahedeen forces took control of the north-western part of our village to launch attacks on the nearby Mazar-i-Sharif airport. In response, Soviet forces set up checkpoints and laid mines in and around our village.

Above: Habib Rahman and his uncle planting seeds on their agricultural land

The mines were laid on the roads, agricultural land and grazing areas. We all suffered greatly due to the presence of mines. At first, we did not know that the landmines were even laid. This led to many accidents as people unwittingly entered minefields. Even children became victims, as they were tasked by their parents to take livestock to graze in mined areas. My own father lost his right hand and became blind in both eyes because of a mine he accidently detonated while collecting firewood. We lost many animals to mines, and we were forced to stop using the roads, agricultural lands and grazing areas. We were worried about the safety of our children whenever they stepped outside of the house.

Our lives have greatly improved since our village was cleared of mines. We started cultivating our agricultural lands again, and our children can collect firewood, herbs and other natural resources. My uncle and I are currently planting wheat seeds on our land, we are very excited that we can work safely, without fear. Our children can now bring us bread and tea while we work, because we no longer fear for them. Even the security of our village has improved, as patrols of international security forces stationed at the base near Mazar’s airport have increased since the end of clearance. My greatest wish for the future is for peace and security to prevail across my beloved country, Afghanistan.’

20 www.halotrust.org

Above: Habib Rahman’s uncle prepares the seeds prior to dispersing them.

HALO started the clearance of the contaminated land around Habib Rahman’s village on 1 January, 2018. Manual deminers cleared a total of 28,942 square meters and found eleven anti-personnel mines. Clearance operations finished in November 2018 and the land was handed back to beneficiaries soon afterwards. 80 families directly benefited from this clearance, including 60 boys and 49 girls, while 223 families benefited indirectly.

www.halotrust.org 21

Annex B: Theory of Change

www.halotrust.org 22

Annex C: Metrics Table with Outputs as reported in IATI

NL METRICS TABLE Grantee: The HALO Trust Country: Afghanistan Project Title: Mine Action and Cluster Munition Programme 2016 - 2020 NL Activity No: 29162 2018 Annual Report Total Dollar Amount of Grant: 6,135,442 Total Grant Period of Performance: 1 September 2016 - 31 August 2020 Reporting Period: 1 January - 31 December 2018 Date Completed: 30 April 2019

Total Contract Actual 2018 Actual 2018 Actual 2018 Actual 2018 2018 Percent CAPACITY Output TOTAL Output Target Q1 (Jan - 31 Q2 (Apr - 30 Q3 (Jul - 30 Q4 (Oct - 31 Target 2018 of Target Total 2018 Mar, 2018) Jun, 2018) Sep, 2018) Dec, 2018) Achieved (%) OVERALL OVERALL LAND CLEARED MINECLEARANCE

Land Cleared (m2) 4,415,000 2,937,000 231,209 283,526 347,138 279,802 1,062,372 1,141,675 107%

Areas Cleared (#) 64 53 2 5 6 5 19 18 95%

BAC

Subsurface Battle Area Cleared (m2) 0 49,378 49,378 49,378

Surface Battle Area Cleared (m2) 0 938,150 0

Areas Cleared (#) 6 5 5

TOTAL LAND CLEARED 4,415,000 3,924,528 231,209 283,526 396,516 279,802 1,062,372 1,191,053 112%

Road Cleared (km) 0 0 0

Mechanical Ground Preparation (m2) 0 353,018 75,674 46,043 18,230 139,947

Ground Processed (m3) 0 149,334 22,793 22,546 2,637 47,976 LAND REDUCED

Land Reduced by Technical Survey (m2) 0 0 0

Areas Reduced (#) 0 0 0 LAND RETURNED

Land returned to the community (m2) 4,415,000 3,924,528 231,209 283,526 396,516 279,802 1,062,372 1,191,053 112%

Areas returned to the community (#) 64 59 2 5 11 5 19 23 121%

LAND CANCELLED Tasks Resurveyed by NTS(#) 0 59 1 0 0 28 29

Area Resurveyed by NTS(m2) 0 4,550,490 252,514 0 0 2,111,131 2,363,645

Tasks Canceled by NTS(#) 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Area Canceled NTS (m2) 0 467,882 0 0 0 315,482 315,482 Tasks remaining after NTS(#) 0 58 1 0 0 28 29 Area remaning after NTS(m2) 0 4,082,608 252,514 0 0 1,795,649 2,048,163 SURVEYS Post-clearance Visits (#) 0 0 0

Newly identified Area (m2) 0 929,759 929,759 929,759

Newly Identified Areas (#) 0 10 10 10 MUNITIONS DESTROYED AP Mines (#) 0 593 29 47 53 55 184 AT Mines (#) 0 27 3 2 0 0 5 UXO (#) 0 129 10 10 13 3 36

Abandoned Explosive Ordnance ≥20mm (#) 0 250 0 49 12 189 250

Small Arms Ammunition <20mm (#) 0 58 0 23 0 0 23

EOD 0

EOD Call-outs (#) 120 35 5 0 6 5 30 16 53% www.halotrust.org 23

Total Contract Actual 2018 Actual 2018 Actual 2018 Actual 2018 2018 Percent CAPACITY Output TOTAL Output Target Q1 (Jan - 31 Q2 (Apr - 30 Q3 (Jul - 30 Q4 (Oct - 31 Target 2018 of Target Total 2018 Mar, 2018) Jun, 2018) Sep, 2018) Dec, 2018) Achieved (%) Beneficiaries OVERALL OVERALL

Direct Male Beneficiaries (#) 8,319 3,261 106 587 325 264 860 1,282 149%

Direct Female Beneficiaries (#) 5,213 3,090 106 586 323 264 855 1,279 150% Direct Male Child Beneficiaries (17 or 10,000 5,359 218 449 545 1,054 1,080 2,266 210% younger) Direct Female Child Beneficiaries (17 or 7,000 4,663 179 671 432 803 1,060 2,085 197% younger) Indirect Male Beneficiaries (#) 5,580 10,426 1,344 435 430 1,789 4,374 3,998 91% Indirect Female Beneficiaries (#) 3,720 9,050 1,328 430 425 1,768 4,311 3,951 92% Indirect Male Child Beneficiaries (17 or 8,370 12,254 1,399 454 448 1,863 4,615 4,164 90% younger)

Indirect Female Child Beneficiaries (17 or 5,580 10,837 1,382 449 443 1,841 4,573 4,115 90% younger)

NON-CLEARANCE ACTIVITIES

MRE Sessions (#) 288 767 184 52 231 0 240 467 195%

Male MRE Recipients (#) 752 1,737 169 138 86 0 1,200 393 33%

Female MRE Recipients (#) 400 2,298 458 136 279 0 1,200 873 73%

Child MRE Recipients (#) 1,728 12,012 3,239 822 4,415 0 2,400 8,476 353%

Male Survivors Benefitting from assistance (#) 72 19 0 0 0 0 23 0 0%

Female Survivors Benefitting from assistance 72 28 0 0 0 0 22 0 0% (#)

Annex D: Metrics Table with Outcomes as reported in IATI

NL METRICS TABLE Grantee: The HALO Trust Country: Afghanistan Project Title: Mine Action and Cluster Munition Programme 2016 - 2020 NL Activity No: 29162 Quarterly Reporting Period/Final Report: Annual report Total Dollar Amount of Grant: 6,135,442 Total Grant Period of Performance: 1 September 2016 - 31 August 2020 Reporting Period: 1 January - 31 December 2018 Date Completed: 3 April 2019 OUTCOME: Security and stability is enhanced, risk of death and injury to individuals and communities reduced indicators: Target 2016-17 2018 2019 2020 OVERALL

Percentage of direct beneficiaries surveyed reporting feeling 32% 10% 55% 33% safer following land release and RE activities

Percentage of direct beneficiaries surveyed reporting increased 90% 56% 99% 78% knowledge of ERW/mines following RE activities

Percentage of direct beneficiaries surveyed demonstrating increased safe behaviour towards the dangers of ERW/mines 24% 52% 72% 62% following RE activities

OUTCOME: Enhanced resilience of vulnerable groups through Improved access to resources, livelihoods and socioeconomic reconstruction indicators: Target 2016-17 2018 2019 2020 OVERALL m2 of land released through TS/clearance used for a) agriculture, b) community development, c) natural resources, d) 4,367,235 2,733,475 1,191,053 3,924,528 housing, e) access/infrastructure

Percentage of direct beneficiaries surveyed reporting improved 32% 100% 100% livelihoods

Percentage of direct beneficiaries surveyed reporting improved 7% 100% 100% access to services and infrastructure

Number of Direct Beneficiaries of Land Release 30,532 9,461 6,912 0 0 16,373

Number of indirect Beneficiaries of Land Release 23,250 26,339 16,228 0 0 42,567

Number of Direct Beneficiaries of MRE 2,880 6,305 9,742 0 0 16,047

Percentage of victims assisted reporting improved livelihoods 20% 93% 93%

25 www.halotrust.org