Five Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians from Explosive Ordnance Mobile Unit Eight spent three weeks in Maputo, Mozambique training 41 members from the Mozambique military to safely remove landmines, June 2011.

According to the United Nations, more than 30 years of conflict have left millions of landmines and other explosive munitions manufactured in 15 different countries scattered throughout Mozambique, rendering much of the usable farmland useless and posing a danger to people, live stock, and wildlife.

The de-mining program is designed to empower members of the Mozambican military to remove mines from their lands by training them to the international standard of mine removal. According to EOD training team Officer-In-Charge, Navy Lieutenant Gregory Bobich, international standards include visually scanning an area, clearing the surface of organic growth while probing for possible trip wires, scanning the bare earth with a metal detector, and finally probing the surface soil for metallic contacts that may indicate a mine is present.

The process is slow, methodical and dangerous if not done correctly. "It's a dangerous job if you aren't trained properly or get complacent. It's also time consuming. An area of 100 square yards could take two months to clear," said Bobich.

The EOD team started the training by assessing their Mozambican students' level of proficiency at mine removal. "We plan our training based on their ability and aptitude. If they are good, we will push them faster, if they aren't where we need them to be we will slow the training down," said Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician Jon Mantle, the team's Leading Petty Officer. "We tailor the training to the students' needs."

In the second week of training the Mozambicans learned to build up the explosive charges that would ultimately defeat the landmine. "We taught them to use electric and non-electric detonators, how to calculate time fuses, how to safely mount the blasting cap to the explosive, how to secure the fuse to ensure proper burn time and how to position the explosive for maximum effectiveness," said Bobich.

In the third week the students were taught the theoretical use of high penetration explosives like Semtex and C-4 as well as the hands-on use of military grade TNT charges to destroy landmines. They were also trained on how to handle accidents while clearing mines. In one training scenario, a mine detonates and the de-miner falls to the ground. The supervisor gave three quick whistles while the other de-miners set their gear aside and rush to remove him from the mined area and began emergency first aid.

"They did a great job. They got him out of the area safely, assessed his condition, stopped the bleeding and stabilized him," Petty Officer First Class Todd Burkholder.

This training is one step in the process to train safe and knowledgeable de-miners. "We aren't certifying them to go out and de-mine a field, we're giving them a foundation to prepare them for success during future training," said Bobich.

Mozambique's Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) / Charge d'affaires Christine Elder observed the final practical exercise during a visit to the training site. "This training helps with the critical task of de-mining and professional development. My hope is that the Mozambican soldiers will put their newly acquired training into action so the people of Mozambique can use the land impacted by landmines for agriculture and building schools. The training they received will also aid their peacekeeping capacities and demining operations in other African countries."

The next day, June 23, during a festive graduation ceremony where the students sang native songs and danced, 38 of the 41 students received certificates of completion, showing that they had met the requirements to proceed in their de-mining training.

Students will receive more group training from the Mozambique military, followed by an apprenticeship program with experienced de-miners. After they complete their de-mining apprenticeship they will join active de-mining units in the field and be able to safely remove mines and train apprentices of their own.

One graduate understands the dangerous nature of his job, but sees the promise it provides in the eyes of his fianccccÃ, who he is set to marry in October. "She is worried about me. She knows the job is dangerous, but it's my job. She is proud because of my work; tomorrow she can dream about a farm," said Armed Forces for the Defence of Mozambique Private Donaldo Leonardo Munguambe.