Barely able to peep over the cattle’s glistening flanks, Ugubos swishes his stick, encouraging them down the dusty path towards the river. It’s a journey he’s made every day through the remote hills of Benguela province, Angola, for most of his young life.
Photographs by Scout Tufankjian
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But it’s a deadly journey. The land here was mined during Angola’s Civil War, laid to protect the railway line from attack.
Ugubos is from the Mucubar ethnic group, cattle herding is their way of life and the boys take responsibility for the valuable livestock from a very young age.
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Barefoot and carrying a simple jerry can of water, Ugubos roams through the Angolan hills to find pasture and water for his cows. Yet one unlucky step could result in serious injury or death. Bounding fragmentation mines have been found – if triggered they leap up into the air, firing out a lethal wave of metal fragments.
HALO has been working to clear the landmines so that Ugubos and his brothers can tread their land safely but we need your support to finish the job. Donate to HALO and make a safer tomorrow for children like Ugubos.
Visit our HALO USA website
