Nearly two years after the conflict broke out, Ukraine has surpassed Afghanistan and Syria to become the most landmine-ridden country on earth. According to estimates published by GLOBSEC, a consulting organization based in Slovakia, it will take Ukraine 757 years to overcome the damage caused by bombs and mines using conventional methods and current resources.
Meanwhile, the country's Minister of Economy, Yulia Svyrydenko, commented that "without demining, we will not be able to completely restart the economy." The 37-year-old female leader of Ukraine outlined the goal of restoring 80% of land contaminated by bombs and bullets for economic use within the next 10 years. Therefore, the most advanced technologies play a significant role, from impact assessment AI systems to homemade mine detection drones.
Kiev is also coordinating with the US data analysis giant Palantir, based on dozens of data streams to develop machine learning models for demining.
Decisions are based on data and technology
The World Bank (WB) estimates that the cost of a multi-year demining project in Ukraine could exceed $37 billion. However, experts in this field also believe that the breakthrough in applying demining technology in European countries can completely change the speed, efficiency and safety of demining work. recovery in war zones around the world.
“I have worked in most of the mine-affected countries over the past 30 years and this combines my previous experience with my passion for innovation and technology,” said Paul Heslop, Director of the Organization. said the United Nations Mine Action Organization. “We will see a fundamental change in the way humanitarian demining is carried out over the next three years in Ukraine, and it will affect the sector around the world.”
The humanitarian mine detection and clearance process has changed little since World War II. Magazine TEAM Ukrainian officials were quoted as saying that the country does not have a unified database of surveyed terrain or compiled information from commercial, international and government operators. Svyrydenko admitted that decisions are made based on priorities and mainly “on paper”.
To date, Kiev is testing the use of accurate satellite images combined with AI algorithms to determine land areas that can be quickly liberated if there is no evidence of remaining landmines. “We want to have a data-driven approach to decision-making,” said Anton Bets, digitalization advisor at the Ministry of Economy.
Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Affairs also revealed a model of an unmanned aerial mine detector, four times more effective than a human. The new drone uses a combination of thermal, hyper-optical and magnetometer sensors to detect mines from above and transmit that information to operating commando units from a secure location.
The importance of general data
Palantir is a data analytics software provider for Ukrainian ministries, having built a platform that combines common data from the Ministries of Education, Defense, Agriculture, Energy and Infrastructure, with information about mobile phone data of carriers.
The American company said the platform has integrated 82 data sets, connecting 6 million buildings, 60.000 railway segments and one million road segments. Sample data TEAM Access is divided by color scheme: transmission lines are shown in blue to red, filters show the territory, location of power plants or schools.
Satellite images show whether the area is currently in use, or has recently experienced an explosion. The dashboard lists the number of deaths, suspected and confirmed hazards, the number of buildings affected and the square meter area of the hazard area.
"If we did it the conventional way, it could take us decades, if not centuries, to clear mines," said Ishraq Irteza, project engineer at Palantir's London office. “The combination of on-the-ground imagery was a key factor in helping them speed things up.”
The platform uses Palantir's AIP, ChatGPT-style large language model, provides real-time data, automatically provides best recommendations to leaders at all levels, has the ability to schedule clearance requests mines and custom warnings. In theory, this helps governments choose priorities that are most effective in terms of both human and economic impact.
However, beyond the data layers, actual demining still relies on people and hardware on the ground. A significant portion of Ukraine's agricultural land remains too dangerous to cultivate. Many farmers have recycled farm equipment and metal detectors to clean up their fields themselves. Others hire contractors to clear land using rudimentary equipment, with no guarantee whether the land will then be safe for farming.
Pete Smith, Ukraine program director at HALO Trust, an international NGO specializing in demining with more than 1.000 employees, said that Ukraine is the first country to carry out humanitarian clearance work in parallel with the conflict. continue. He also said data collection is conducted everywhere, from drones to partner surveys.
According to the Ministry of Economy, Ukraine currently has 29 demining machines and 3.000 experts. Meanwhile, a UN official said that it would take 20.000 deminers working here to make a significant difference by 2025.
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