The Disarmament Programme
Photo: Eric Kanalstein - UNMIL

The Disarmament, Demobilization, Reintegration and Rehabilitation (DDRR) Unit reports to the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General. The DDRR Unit, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the National Transitional Government of Liberia (NTGL) form the Joint Implementation Unit (JIU), which is responsible for the implementation of the DDRR program. The JIU coordinates the inputs of other sections of UNMIL, NGO service providers and UN agency implementing partners, as well as the transitional government, into the DDRR program.

The DDRR Program is indeed inclusive, utilizing the full talents and expertise of the UN family and international and local NGOs. Throughout the planning and operational periods, UNMIL collaborated closely with UN agencies, and NGOs, and Liberian partners. The cooperation allows the program to fully provide the needs of the DDRR Program. While the UNMIL military component is the lead player in the disarmament process, a large and varied team brings additional expertise into the processfrom site building to final discharge after demobilization.

Mandate

Security Council resolution 1509 (2003) mandates UNMIL to:

• assist in the development of cantonment sites and provide security at the sites;
• observe and monitor disengagement and cantonment of military forces;
• developan action plan for the overall implementation of a disarmament, demobilization, reintegration, and repatriation (DDRR) program for all armed parties, with particular attention to the special needs of child combatants and women; address the inclusion of non-Liberian combatants in the DDRR process; and
• carry out voluntary disarmament and collect and destroy weapons and ammunition as part of an organized DDRR program.

Three phases of disarmament

Phase I of disarmament began on 7 December 2003. UNMIL peacekeepers disarmed 13,490 combatants and collected 8,679 weapons and 2,650 unexploded ordnance, along with 2,717,668 rounds of small arms ammunition. Phase I was conducted mainly at Camp Scheffelin in Monrovia.

Phase II of the program, which targeted former combatants close to Monrovia, started on 15 April 2004 at the containment site in Gbarnga. Three other demobilization cantonment site were established in Buchanan (20 April), Tubmanburg (25 April) and VOA in Monrovia (30 April). The cantonment sites were closed on 5 July in Buchanan, 26 July in Gbarnga, 8 September at VOA in Monrovia, and 14 September in Tubmanburg as the caseloads were completed at each of the sites.

Beginning in Zwedru on 9 July, Phase III established demobilization cantonment sites in more remote areas. In addition to Zwedru, sites were established in Ganta/Kpein (17 August), Voinjama (8 September) and Harper (29 September).

Results to date

As at 15 February 2005, a total of 101,495 fighters have been disarmed and demobilized, consisting of 68, 162 men, 22,370 women, 8,523 boys and 2,440 girls. Moreover, UNMIL peacekeepers had collected a total of 28, 314 weapons and 33,604 heavy munitions of other categories. In addition, 6,486,136 rounds of small arms ammunition had been surrendered.

Also, as at 15 February 2005, 612 foreign combatants had officially entered the Liberian DDRR Program (308 Guineans, 242 Sierra Leoneans, 50 Ivorians, 7 Nigerians, 4 Malians and 1 Ghanaian).Of this amount, 485 were adults while 127were children.

Reintegration and rehabilitation

Demobilized combatants identified their training preferences: 40 percent chose formal education, 14 percent auto mechanics, 11 percent generic skills training, 7 percent driving, 7 percent tailoring, 4 percent agriculture and 3 percent masonry.

As at 15 February 2005, the Joint Implementation Unit (JIU) had approved fifteen rehabilitation and reintegration projects that offer ex-combatants vocational skills training. Parallel programs under the sponsorship of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the European Union (EU) are on-going in other parts of the country. The projects targeted a total of 16,562 demobilized combatants.In addition, 7,202 demobilized combatants had been processed and began formal education at the start of the school year last October.Active efforts were underway to establish more projects so as to meet the needs of already demobilized combatants.