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Norwegian People's Aid rejects new conditions from the US State Department because they conflict with the organization's values, Norwegian politics and Norwegian law.

“The   U.S. Department of State  is  seeking  to impose conditions that would require us to abandon our commitment to equality and diversity not only in  programmes it  funds, but across  all  our work, including activities supported by other donors. We cannot accept that. We  comply with  Norwegian law and Norwegian policy, and our values are not for sale,” says Raymond Johansen, Secretary General of Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA). 

The NPA Laos Operations Management team, led by Operations Manager Mr. Magnus Johanson and Deputy Country Director Mrs. Linh Nguyen, recently visited NPA Vietnam in Quang Tri Province for a two-day knowledge exchange, 21 and 22 July.

NPA Laos recently welcomed Mr. Olivier Bauduin, UXO Program Advisor from the U.S. Embassy in Vientiane, for a field monitoring visit to U.S. funded operations in Sekong and Attapeu Provinces.

While preparing space for his son’s wedding celebration, Mr. Koi from Hinlath Village in Xanasomboun district, Lao PDR, discovered a buried item he thought could be sold as scrap metal. Instead, it was a live 100Ib incendiary bomb.

On Friday, The National Regulatory Authority (NRA) under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), convened the National Consultation on Cross-Cutting Issues in the UXO/Mine Action Sector in Lao PDR. The consultation was held alongside two additional preparatory events for the Third Review Conference of the Convention on Cluster Munitions (3RC-CCM), which Lao PDR will host in September 2026.

Humanitarian mine action is imperative to save lives, enable recovery and return land safely to communities. Mine action today is judged not only by how much land it clears, but by the quality and sustainability of the land it returns.

In Lao PDR, Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) clears land contaminate by cluster munitions, helping communities regain safe access to land for farming and daily life. While this work brings significant benefits, some clearance activities may also have environmental impacts if it is not carefully managed.