The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) and the Japanese NGO International Mine Clearance and Community Development (IMCCD) have signed a partnership agreement on the project “Community-Based Mine Clearance for Development”. The signing means the two parties will continue to remove landmines from priority development areas and promote socio-economic growth.
It was signed by CMAC director-general Heng Ratana and Takayama Ryori, president of IMCCD, during a ceremony today, August 25, at CMAC headquarters in Phnom Penh.
Ratana explained that their cooperation will focus on clearance operations in Battambang and Pailin provinces. The project runs from August 16, 2025, to August 15, 2026, and is supported by a Japanese Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) with a budget of $44,482.
IMCCD has been working with CMAC since 2011. Ratana said the project targets clearance of anti-personnel mines and unexploded ordnance, with a particular emphasis on anti-tank mines.
The initiative has contributed to safer land use for farming, housing, schools and health centres, as well as broader community development and infrastructure.
He noted that Takayama, a former Japanese soldier who served with the UNTAC mission in Cambodia in 1993, has more than 25 years’ experience in mine action. In the early 2000s, CMAC and IMCCD began clearance in heavily mined villages, starting with Ta Sen commune, Kamrieng district, Battambang province, which lies along the Thai border.
“We cleared the mines, supported charity groups that built schools and Takayama even mobilised Japanese investors to set up five medium-sized factories in remote areas. Remarkably, Khmer spirits distilled from cassava and golden mango at those sites went on to win recognition at wine competitions in France,” Ratana recalled.
The joint efforts of CMAC and IMCCD have transformed once mine-littered land into productive ground for household and national economic growth.
Ratana expressed strong hope that the government’s new mine clearance policy for the Cambodia–Thailand border areas, which prioritises inhabited and cultivated land, will ensure greater safety and socio-economic benefits. He shared his hopes that Ta Sen commune, with minefields along the border, may eventually be completely cleared.
The CMAC unit and the Japanese organization IMCCD continue the mine clearance project in Battambang and Pailin provinces bordering Thailand. Photo by CMAC
