Monday 4 April is being marked across the world as International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action.
"Mine clearance prevents an indiscriminate weapon from causing harm and havoc long after conflicts have ended, while also creating jobs, transforming danger zones into productive land and setting societies on course for lasting security," declared United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in his message to support the initiative.
On 8 December 2005, the UN General Assembly declared that the same date each year would be officially proclaimed and observed as an occasion to focus action on the landmine issue - which is hugely serious in many developing countries, on account of the mining that has taken place during over 450 conflicts since the Second World War ended in 1945.
The day calls for continued efforts by national states, with the assistance of the United Nations and relevant organisations, "to foster the establishment and development of national mine-action capacities in countries where mines and explosive remnants of war constitute a serious threat to the safety, health and lives of the civilian population, or an impediment to social and economic development at the national and local levels."
More on the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action - http://www.un.org/en/events/mineawarenessday/