DUSHANBE. July 23 (Interfax-AVN) - A mine-clearing center opened in Dushanbe on Wednesday.
At the opening ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Saidamir Zukhurov said that "Tajikistan's center for mine-clearing issues has started work thanks to financial support from the British government and the UN Development Program."
The center's key goals include reducing the number of landmine incidents involving civilians and removing mines from arable lands and pastures.
The center was created under a program signed between the country's government and the UN Development Program in late June 2003.
The British government has initially pledged USD250,000 for this initiative, which is to be provided over the next ten months. More funds can be allocated later.
Official estimates put the number of various mines still buried in Tajikistan's soil following the civil war of the 1990s at up to 18,000.