The Global Issue

More than one-third of the worlds countries, 59 states and four other areas, are contaminated with antipersonnel mines, cluster munitions or other explosive remnants of war.

Asia contains the country most heavily bombed per capita, Laos, and the worlds most heavily
mined country, Afghanistan.
In 2012, at least 1,066 people were killed and another 2,552 people were injured. Numerous casualties go
unrecorded and therefore the true casualty figure is likely significantly higher.

38% of all landmine victims in 2012 were situated in Afghanistan, Cambodia or Colombia.
The International Campaign to Ban Landmines and the Cluster Munition Coalition (ICBL- CMM), global
coalitions of hundreds of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society and committed individuals, work
to reach a worldwide ban on landmines and cluster munitions and to get as many states as possible on board
the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty and Convention on Cluster Munition.

The Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty is a legally binding international agreement that bans the use,
production, stockpiling and transfer of antipersonnel mines and places obligations on countries to clear affected
areas, assist victims and destroy stockpiles. The Treaty comprises deadlines to clear all known minefields
between 2015 and 2020.

Landmines

A landmine is an explosive device designed to be placed on or in the ground, to explode when triggered by
an operator or the proximity of a vehicle, person or animal. Antipersonnel landmines are designed to injure or
kill people while anti-vehicle or antitank mines are intended to explode when triggered by a vehicle.

The actual number of landmines still scattered around the world is unknown, but it is estimated that millions
of landmines remain.

Anti-personnel mines are priced at $3 to $30. The cost to the international community of neutralizing them
ranges from $300 to $1000.

Buried landmines can remain active for over 50 years, posing a threat years after hostilities have ended.

Mine action refers to a broad spectrum of efforts to eliminate the threat of landmines and explosive remnants
of war. It includes survey, the removal of these devices (and marking off dangerous areas), assistance to victims,
mine-risk education, the destruction of stockpiled landmines, and advocating for participation in international
treaties.

Landmine impact

Landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW) affect innocent people
indiscriminately and impede development long after the armed conflict has ended.

The vast majority of recorded mine/ERW casualties in 2012 were civilians, 47% of those victims were children.

Mine/ERW incidents impact not only the direct casualties but also greatly influence their families, struggling
under new physical, psychological, and economic pressures.

Landmines deprive families and communities of land that could be put to productive use such as
agriculture, they restrict access to schools, hospitals, and water supplies and they hinder the return and
resettlement of refugees and displaced persons.

FROM PETS TO HEROES - OUR STORY

Bart had a personal affection for Africa that had developed as he traveled in Africa as a student. Quitting his job as a
product designer in Belgium, he began exploring the pressing issue of landmines in Sub-Saharan Africa. The
continent is the most landmine-affected region in the world and these remnants of war not only pose a dire
humanitarian challenge but are also significant structural barriers to development. Where mines are buried, whole
communities must be displaced, and potentially sustainable land cannot be utilized. Moreover, vulnerable communities
remain dependent on imported expertise to address the complex problems of landmine detection and clearance of
suspected areas. After thorough analysis, Bart concluded that the methods employed in landmine detection were
dangerous, costly, time consuming- and could be markedly improved upon.
The inspiration
While researching this issue, Bart came across an article about gerbils ability to detect explosives in a laboratory
setting. The article had been published in the 1970s but he added a fresh twist to the research. He weighed the
perspective of subsistence farmers with limited resources as he approached the global landmine problem. Rats were
cheap, efficient and could be locally sourced. Bart began experimenting with rats to harness and employ innovative
scent technology for application in landmine detection. The Belgian Directorate for International Cooperation (DGIS)
provided the initial financial support to develop the concept in 1997. APOPO vzw was registered under Belgian law as
a non-profit, and started its first research in early 1998.
The solution
In 2000, Bart and team moved the research operations to Morogoro, Tanzania, where the organization entered a
partnership with the Sokoine University of Agriculture to host APOPOs training and research facility. APOPO
established a 24 Ha landmine detection testfield and started with training rats to sniff out TNT in deactivated
landmines. Three years later, while the first landmine detection rats were tested under real conditions in Mozambique,
APOPO won the World Bank Development Marketplace Global Competition, which provided seed funding for its
Tuberculosis (TB) detection research program. APOPOs very successful TB division is a step towards addressing the
millions of TB cases that go undetected and can lead to death, in Africa and throughout the world.
With the help of this effective combination of vision, innovation and technology these rodents, which we call our
HeroRATs, help us solve some of the most pressing humanitarian challenges quickly, cost-effectively and accurately.