COTABATO CITY — A major boost to public safety and peacebuilding in Mindanao was unveiled on November 28 with the formal launch of the Operation Center for Explosive Hazard Management and Response (OPCEN-EHMR), a centralized hub dedicated to clearing unexploded ordnance (UXOs) and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) across the Bangsamoro region.
The facility, a key component of the Bangsamoro normalization program, is designed to coordinate and monitor all explosive hazard retrieval operations—ensuring faster, safer, and more efficient responses to threats that have long endangered communities recovering from decades of conflict.
Australia, a steadfast peace partner in Mindanao for more than 30 years, funded the establishment of the center through the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD). Its support is viewed as a critical investment in sustaining peace gains and protecting vulnerable populations, particularly children who often fall victim to abandoned explosives.
Retired Major General Francisco Ariel A. Felicidario III, co-chair of the Government of the Philippines–Joint Peace and Security Committee (GPH-JPSC), and Australian Ambassador Marc Innes-Brown jointly led the inauguration. Felicidario emphasized that the center has already made significant strides since beginning its initial operations in May 2025.
“Even in its early phase, the OPCEN-EHMR has delivered immediate results in safeguarding communities from deadly remnants of conflict,” he noted, stressing that every retrieved explosive device represents a life potentially saved.
Ambassador Innes-Brown hailed the center as a milestone in the GPH-MILF peace process, underscoring that cooperative security remains essential in ensuring long-term stability in the region.
Presidential Assistant David Diciano, speaking on behalf of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity (OPAPRU), said the impact of the center goes beyond the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). “This mechanism strengthens national efforts to keep all communities safe and supports broader peace and development initiatives,” he said.
Since its initial operationalization, the OPCEN-EHMR has already coordinated, overseen, and documented 151 UXO retrieval operations across the Bangsamoro region—demonstrating the urgent need for a dedicated facility and the value of sustained international partnership.
Officials affirmed that clearing explosive hazards remains essential to securing lasting peace, rebuilding communities, and ensuring that future generations in Mindanao can grow up free from the lingering dangers of war.