MA staff should be confident that they have the appropriate level of training, tools and equipment necessary to complete the task with an acceptable level of safety. If this is not the case, then operations should cease until the minimum necessary level is achieved / procured. The above list is not exhaustive and MA organisations should conduct an assessment of the conditions under which they are operating and ensure that their SOPs specify suitable referrals. This should be checked by NMAAs during accreditation and follow-on QA checks.
IF IT IS BELIEVED THAT THERE IS A LACK OF TRAINING, EQUIPMENT OR CAPABILITIES TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE THE TASK. ANY OTHER ORGANISATIONAL ISSUES SPECIFIED FOR IMMEDIATE ESCALATION.
As specified in IMAS 09.31, there will be occasions when MA organisations must inform an NMAA that a situation has arisen, or an event has occurred. The NMAA should specify these in relevant NMAS and in turn ensure that organisations include them in their programme-specific SOPs. The following examples from IMAS 09.31 are only intended as a guide:
EVENT
EXPLANATION
Not all MA organisations will have the same range of capabilities to hand. If an MA organisation cannot safely conduct an IEDD task then they should inform the NMAA and seek their support. In countries where energetics are restricted this could mean requesting assistance from the security forces. There may well be legal requirements associated with these events. MA organisations should have contingency plans specified in their SOPs to clearly outline the procedure for their staff. If an MA organisation identifies a new or novel IED its technical details should be recorded and passed to the NMAA and other MA organisations, as soon as possible. This is extremely important to help common understanding of the IED threat and facilitate safe operations. This may mean that an MA organisation pauses operations to conduct continuation training or enforces specific limitations on what IEDD operators can and cannot do.
A DEVICE IS IDENTIFIED THAT FALLS OUTSIDE THE CAPABILITIES OF THE MA ORGANISATION.
AN UNPLANNED EXPLOSION OCCURS DURING AN IEDD TASK THAT RESULTS IN INJURY OR DEATH.
A NEW OR NOVEL DEVICE IS ENCOUNTERED.
A TRAINING GAP IS IDENTIFIED FOR THE CONDUCT OF SAFE, EFFECTIVE AND RELIABLE IEDD OPERATIONS. A NEW PROCEDURE OR IEDD TECHNIQUE IS DEVELOPED TO IMPROVE SAFETY, EFFECTIVENESS, AND EFFICIENCY.
If one MA organisation develops a new system, procedure or technique it is good practice to share this widely with the rest of the humanitarian MA sector to facilitate continual improvement.
IEDD in mine action – overview
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