Ukraine to develop standard for involving dogs in humanitarian demining – Economy Ministry

Deputy Economy Minister Ihor Bezkaravaynyi told this to an Ukrinform correspondent during the presentation of the project “Use of Service Dogs for Demining in Ukraine.”

“A technique, an approach and personnel to work with (dogs in humanitarian demining - ed.). are emerging in Ukraine. It is therefore necessary to standardize this process. This is currently being formalized as a bureaucratic document. I hope it will be adopted by the end of the year. By the end of the year, we will have a standardized procedure for engaging dogs in the fields,” said Bezkaravaynyi.

He said that operators from other countries specializing in the involvement of animals in demining can join the removal of explosive devices in Ukraine.

“We expect more than one (humanitarian demining program - ed.). Indeed, there are numerous operators around the world who are experts in the engagement of dogs. There is, for example, the Norwegian People's Aid mine action operator, which is developing this area in particular,” he said.

Bezkaravaynyi underscored the importance of Ukraine developing its capabilities in the field of humanitarian demining.

“Some Ukrainian dog training clubs may wish to become an operator - they would adopt standards, train their specialists, get permits and go to work in the fields. It would be great to develop our domestic product, which could then go around the world to carry out demining work,” he said.

As reported by Ukrinform, UNDP, together with the Economy Ministry and other partners, presented the project "Use of Service Dogs for Demining in Ukraine", which aims to develop techniques for searching for explosive objects with the help of dogs to speed up demining.