Eni renews support to the “100 Women in Demining” project of the HALO Trust

Luanda (Angola), 26 November 2020 - Eni has renewed its support to the HALO Trust’s “100 Women in Demining” project for the third year in a row. With this donation, the HALO Trust will be able to clear further 40,000m2 of land from mines in the Benguela province, in the town of Balombo, while also implementing COVID-19 awareness initiatives.

Eni – also on behalf of its Block 15/06 partners Sonangol and SSI Fifteen Ltd - has been supporting the HALO Trust since 2017, recognizing the importance of contributing to promote the access to land that is safe while also encouraging engagement and opportunities for women.

With Eni’s support, the project has so far trained and employed 23 women and cleared an area of over 80,000 m2 and deactivated over 100 landmines. Also, a small school was built to enable children to improve education conditions in the Kaneguerere community. This year, the project will include specific Covid-19 awareness training and best practices including use of appropriate protection equipment. The project contributes to the UN 2030 Agenda’s Sustainable development goals, specifically SDG 5 – Gender equality; SDG 8 – Decent work and economic growth; SDG 15 – life on land and SDG 17 – Partnerships for the Goals.

The “100 Women in Demining” project contributes to the goal of a landmine impact free Benguela Province by the end of 2023 and a mine impact free Angola by 2025; its main goals are to prevent landmine accidents and return land to productive use; to contribute to women empowerment in Angola through employment and training; to improve women’s professional opportunities following mine clearance; to strengthen and provide new opportunities to the families of those employed; and to contribute to changes in attitudes towards the roles of women in Angola, especially with respect to labour market participation and leadership.

Angola plays a key role in the strategy for organic growth of Eni, which has been present in the Country since 1980. Besides Block 15/06, Eni currently operates Block Cabinda Norte, Block 1/14, Block Cabinda Centro and Block 28.