AMMAN (JT) - Landmines and other explosive remnants of war are a global problem that can only be solved through international cooperation, HRH Prince Mired, chairman of the National Committee for De-mining and Rehabilitation (NCDR), said on Sunday.

Speaking at the opening ceremony for the NCDR's 2009 Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) International Senior Managers Training Course, Prince Mired stressed the need for ERW action leaders worldwide to share experience and expertise in order to strengthen the ERW eradication movement at the national and international levels.

He also emphasised the scope of the landmine and ERW problem, noting that despite great progress made in Jordan and other countries towards eradicating ERW, much work remains to be done, according to an NCDR statement.

"We all have great challenges on our hands," the Prince said at the ceremony yesterday, held at the UN University premises at the University of Jordan.

The first such programme to be held in the Middle East, the four-week course brings together 30 participants from 20 countries, who will be trained by instructors from the NCDR and several of its institutional partners, including James Madison University, the Mine Action Information Centre, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian De-mining, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the UNDP, the Mines Advisory Group and Norwegian People's Aid, according to the statement.

UNDP Jordan Country Director Jacinta Barrins, who also spoke at the ceremony, stressed that mine action is a "potential driver" for poverty alleviation and institutional development. She acknowledged the NCDR's progress in twinning its de-mining activities with these goals.

Addressing the course participants, landmine survivor Kamel Saadi highlighted the importance of awareness raising and education to reduce the risk of mine accidents, praising the NCDR for its work in mine risk education and victim rehabilitation.

"Within our field, humanity invites us," said Saadi, who lost his left leg below the knee in a mine accident at the age of 14.

Funded by the US Department of State’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, the ERW training course is part of the NCDR’s mission "to share Jordan’s success in mine and ERW clearance with other de-mining organisations around the world", the statement said.

As Jordan's national mine-action authority, the NCDR’s goal is "to improve coordination on the delivery of effective mine-action programmes, in the struggle to rid the Kingdom of ERW and diminish their humanitarian impact".