A “Play Football - Don’t Play Mines” competition which is part of the Mine Risk Education project implemented by Project RENEW and funded by Irish Aid. Photos: Gio Linh District Youth Union

Play football - Don't play with bombs and mines' is an annual MRE summer camp for girls and boys in Quang Tri province which is still dealing with the post-war consequences of unexploded ordnance (UXO). It is run by Project RENEW in partnership with the Youth Union of the province.

This time, the event was organised by Gio Linh District Youth Union and Project RENEW, to ensure every girl and boy have their right to participate in, to be protected and to grow up in a safe environment.

It created a safe and recreational experience for UXO at-risk children in provinces of Quang Tri during the summer time over the past years.

This is one of the key messages that Project RENEW is conveying to parents and community members through non-competitive football games as part of Irish Aid-funded MRE program.

The slogan of the tournament was “Don’t play with landmines, play football”, with this message RENEW and the Youth Union members can encourage the vulnerable youth to stay away from UXO in an enjoyable way.

The main objective of Project RENEW’s Mine Risk Education is the risk of explosive remnants of war (ERW) accidents among chilren and adults is reduced and eventually eliminated through education, information, and public awareness in support of Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) quick response.

Project RENEW’s practical successes in clearance of UXO during the past ten years, in partnership with Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), have proven that removal and destruction of the most lethal threat must be the priority, that the danger can be confronted, and ordnance can be cleaned up, safely. That’s where MRE plays an integral role – by educating children and adults, who must continue to live with the threat of UXO, about how they can live safely, how they can avoid accident and injury, how they can be part of the day-to-day solution to this problem.

The clean-up of wartime debris will likely continue for years. However, children and adults can be safe if they are educated about UXO risks and provided with guidance on what to do when they encounter ERW around their homes and gardens, roadsides and school yards./.