China-aided landmine clearance project benefits over 2.6 mln Cambodians

A China-supported landmine elimination project has cleared more than 160 square kilometres of contaminated land in Cambodia since 2018, directly benefiting over 2.6 million people, officials said Saturday.

Heng Ratana, director general of the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC), said in a social media post that the China-Aided Cambodia Landmine Elimination Project had located and destroyed more than 95,700 landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). He thanked China for its grant support in carrying out the work between 2018 and February 2026.

Cambodia remains among the countries worst affected by mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). Officials estimate that 4 to 6 million landmines and munitions were left behind from three decades of conflict that ended in 1998.

According to Yale University, the United States dropped over 2.75 million tons of ordnance on Cambodia during 230,516 sorties between October 1965 and August 1973.

A government report shows that from 1979 to June 2025, landmine and ERW blasts killed 19,843 people and injured 45,267 others.

Cambodia has pledged to clear all remaining landmines and ERWs by 2030.

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