A crucial landmine clearing charity, endorsed by Diana, Prince of Wales, 30 years ago, is facing an “existential crisis” in funding due to a lack of guarantees from the UK and Europe, the head of the organisation has warned.
The Halo Trust (HT), which shot to prominence in 1995 when Diana visited its work in Angola, Africa, has said Yvette Cooper has been unable to guarantee its funding for the future.
The Foreign Secretary recently announced £4m in aid to help clear landmines in parts of Gaza to allow more aid to get into the region, but she has been unable to commit to further funding beyond that to help with Halo’s work.
James Cowan, the charity’s chief executive, revealed earlier this month that Cooper was unable to give him any guarantees that funding would continue for the trust, despite Halo and the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) being responsible for clearing 69 per cent of landmines across the world.
Speaking at a Chatham House event, Cowan said a lack of financial commitment from Europe had meant the trust was now facing acute challenges, having convinced the US to continue its funding despite White House cuts to the aid budget.
“The Halo Trust problem is not with American Funding,” he said. “It’s actually with European funding. It is the second third of our money where we are now facing an existential crisis.
“Will the British cut support to the Halo Trust? I don’t know that yet. I saw the Foreign Secretary only 10 days ago, and she came to my headquarters. She’s very, very keen to support us in Gaza, but is it about chasing the latest headline, or are we actually going to invest in things over the long term?”
Diana’s involvement with the charity launched it into prominence in the 1990sCowan added that he was waiting for both the Budget and spending review decisions but was confident he would be able to persuade the UK Government to “stay firm to the end”.
But he raised doubts over the future commitment from other European nations, such as Germany and France, adding that he was now turning to Middle Eastern countries and even private donors to help fill the funding gap.
Cowan said that the financial hits were already taking their toll on the organisation, which had a headcount of 12,000 people helping to clear landmines across the world, but was likely to go down to 7,000 by the middle of next year without support.
Back in October, Cooper announced £4m in funding for the United Nations Mine Action Service to help clear the around 7,500 tonnes of unexploded munitions that is impeding efforts to get more aid into Gaza. The work will be carried out by Halo and MAG.
The charity has been more recently supported by Prince Harry in Mozambique (Photo: Getty Images)Unveiling the cash, the Foreign Secretary said: “We will not be able to get relief at the scale so desperately needed in Gaza without clearing munitions and making progress on the pathway for lasting peace.”
Cowan highlighted the charity’s work in Cambodia, which he warned Britain was in danger of losing to the Chinese if it did not continue it funding commitment to carry out its work.
“We work in countries like Cambodia that appear to be well beyond war, but only a few days ago, in fact, a border conflict broke out between Cambodia and Thailand because of land mines,” he said. “And why would the British want to give up on a country like Cambodia after 30 years of clearance, only to surrender it to the Chinese?”
Underlining the importance of tackling conflicts, such as those in the Middle East and South East Asia, Cowan said: “Conflict, perhaps after the climate crisis, is at the heart of our world’s problems today and – unless we address conflict – then our world is going to fall apart in front of our eyes.”
The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.
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