Test and Evaluation One instrument for collaboration in humanitarian mine clearance

1. Test and Evaluation One instrument for collaboration in humanitarian mine clearance Francois Littmann European Commission Joint Research Centre in Ispra (Italy) Institute for the Protection & Security of the Citizen Humanitarian Security Unit

2. Systematic Inventory of Test & Evaluation Capabilities, Projects, Needs, … in the South Eastern Europe region • What: International Test & Evaluation Program first project • Who: EC leader, Canada & UK • Where: SEE • When: 2001 • How: collect information on T& E capabilities, projects, standards, needs, ... by questionnaires (Albania, Kosovo, Serbia & Montenegro), in country visits (BiH, Croatia, Slovenia) and a technical regional workshop in Topusko (Croatia)

3. General T&E needs • - The mine-affected countries of SEE need T&E results to find equipment and processes able to increase “the safety, the quality of work and the cost/benefit ratio of the whole demining process” • - All available or promising equipment, tools or processes able to increase productivity of the demining process need to be tested in the future and there was an urgent need for practical and credible T&E standards

4. Regional T&E capabilities • - Plenty of good facilities with the associated expertise in the region for T&E in the following domains: • - Mechanical equipment • - Explosive Detecting Dog (EDD) • - Various sensor equipment • - Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) • - Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) • - Test minefields that replicate as close as possible the real minefield environment (vegetation, soil, topography, weather conditions, threat mines, etc…)

5. Regional T&E deficiencies • - Exchange of T&E information: • There is on one hand a surprising amount of information available on regional T&E but on the other hand a lack of communication between the different players • - Common T&E standards: • Results of accreditation and tests carried out in one country should, as far as possible, be accepted in all other countries • There is already a formal agreement between Bosnia Herzegovina and Croatia to accept each other’s accreditation on mechanical equipment and EDD teams

6. EDD: New testing sites and criteria are required for work in disturbed ground which has been processed by mechanical equipment, scenarios with tripwires and difficult ground such as heavily wooded areas Mechanical Equipment: Formal standards to replace many ad hoc tests and standards Metal detectors: Should be tested on a regular basis, only the detectors that are actually new or upgraded would require detailed T&E. Formal standards are urgently needed PPE: There is an obvious regional need on accreditation of PPE against realistic mine threat scenarios Regional T&E needs

7. What happened since? • Metal detectors • Progress in Standards • First issue of the CEN Workshop Agreement in March 2003 • Soon after, training on the use of the T&E Standards • Experimental verification throughout 2003 • Review of Standards in approximately one year • Electro-magnetic characterization of soils • Launch of an ITEP project lead by Canada & EC • Mechanical equipment • Meeting in Canada on best practices • Same CEN process as for metal detectors, Sweden is the Secretariat • Ground Penetrating Radar • The process of developing standards has been launched in 2002

8. Total T&E projects – 37 Website: www.itep.ws ITEP Workplan

9. Collaboration • Partnership with the SEE region on T&E • Encouragement of a regional SEE network on T&E • Active participation of the SEE region in all the projects, specifically in soil characterization