(Photo/Department of Arms Control under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

A mine clearance training course, hosted in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, marks the latest instance of humanitarian aid given by China to the nation of Cambodia.

The six-week training course was held at the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) University of Science and Technology. It covered theoretical knowledge as well as hands-on practice clearing mines. A total of 40 Cambodian officers underwent the training. After the course concluded, the Chinese government also donated mine-clearing equipment and protective gear to the Cambodian representatives.

Cambodia has one of the highest concentrations of undetonated underground landmines and explosives of any country, with an explosives-contaminated area of over 1,900 square kilometers. Between 1979 and 2013, more than 40,000 people were injured by undetected mines.

Since 1999, China has provided a number of training sessions to Cambodia. The latest session marks the implementation of President Xi Jinping’s pledge at the UN peacekeeping summit last September to host 10 aid projects for mine clearance within five years, according to the Department of Arms Control under the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Apart from Cambodia, Chinese mine clearance experts have also been dispatched to countries like Thailand and Eritrea to offer assistance with local mine-clearing projects.