On 17-18 October 2024, the annual Ukraine Mine Action Conference 2024 (UMAC-2024) will be held in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is co-organised by Switzerland and Ukraine.

The conference will be opened by the President of the Swiss Confederation, Viola Amherd. More than 60 representatives of countries and international organisations will take part in the conference. Among the speakers:

• Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine;
• Ignazio Cassis, Federal Councillor, Head of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland;
• Gordan Grlić Radman, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia;
• Ly Thuch, Senior Minister and First Vice President of the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority - President of the Fifth Review Conference of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention;
• Tsuge Yoshifumi, State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan;
• Stanley L. Brown, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, U.S. Department of State;
• Howard Buffett, Chairman and CEO of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and many others.

This event will be a follow-up to last year's International Donor Conference on Humanitarian Mine Action in Ukraine, which took place in Croatia and brought together representatives from 43 countries.

"Over the past year, Ukraine has done a lot of work in the field of mine action. We have adopted the National Mine Action Strategy until 2033 and the Operational Plan. We are testing innovative demining technologies both with small teams of local developers and by engaging technology giants. Ukraine has increased its mine action capacity with the support and expertise of partners. In return, we offer solutions that can change global approaches to mine action. The conference in Lausanne, supported by more than 60 countries and international organisations, is an important step in coordinating efforts to demine Ukraine. We expect to bring both financial support and new demining equipment from Lausanne," said Yuliia Svyrydenko, First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Minister of Economy of Ukraine.

Background information

The following countries will take part in the Ukraine Mine Action Conference 2024: Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kosovo, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mozambique, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States of America.

In addition, the following international organisations are involved: European Commission, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), Organization of American States (OAS), Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations International Emergency Fund for Children (UNICEF), United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS), United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and World Food Programme (WFP).

For more details please visit the Ministry of Economy official website.