Former Branson Associate and South African Partners sign mult million dollar landmine detetction deal
Submitted by: Kai Von PannierLandmine Clearance To Help Eradicate, Global Food Aid Programs With Compassionate Capitalism.
Durban, South Africa - A leading British firm at the forefront of Landmine detection capability has today ( Wednesday 19th October) signed a multi million dollar share exchange deal with US quoted firm NHS Health Solutions, Inc (NHSH) (Pink Sheets).
Mineseeker Operations Overseas Ltd (Mineseeker), founded by former Virgin Airship & Balloon company CEO Mike Kendrick, a long time friend and former business associate of Sir Richard Branson, has developed a unique means of locating landmines in war torn and post conflict countries.
The deal will see Mineseeker become a wholly owned subsidiary of NHSH and will allow the company to raise funding for the development and roll out program of its Mineseeker technology and its subsidiary applications. The deal will see the Mineseeker management team have the majority equity position in NHSH with Mike Kendrick appointed as Chairman, Ed Cross as CEO, Mark Dorey as Commercial Director, Richard Trueman as Operations Director and Jeff DiGenova as President (US).
Kendrick’s company, Mineseeker, an aerial survey and mapping company, has developed the unique landmine detection technology in conjunction with the British Ministry Of Defence and American Defence contractors. The groundbreaking technology has been extensively trialled in Kosovo, Croatia and the USA using airships and rotary (helicopter) aircraft, which can currently survey up to five square kilometres per day. Its advancement in locating landmines has life changing ramifications.
It is estimated by the United Nations that there are up to 100 million landmines located in 70 countries around the world. Landmines have maimed or killed more than 1 million people across the world to date and every nineteen minutes someone is affected by a landmine. With current detection methods it will take, according to the UN, up to 600 years to rid the planet of landmines and cost in the region of $50 Billion. Utilising Mineseeker technology and mobilising a fleet of twenty-five aircraft, the current estimated timeframe could be reduced to approximately 30 years, and the cost reduced by a factor of ten.
The new innovative and advanced lightweight technology uses ground penetrating synthetic aperture radar (GPSAR) and photo mosaic technology to produce a fusion of “Multi-Spectral and Imaging Radar” (MIR)™ of both surface and sub-surface targets, designed specifically to locate landmines and unexploded remnants of war. The company has also developed other detection applications and will be looking to launch “Aquaseeker”, “Airseeker”, “Threatseeker” and “Landseeker” in due course. Mineseeker remains the only company to have demonstrated MIR™ technology in an operational environment to date.
Commenting on the deal Mike Kendrick said;
“Mineseeker technology represents a significant and major step forward in the detection and mapping of landmines both in war torn and post conflict countries. The deal with NHS Health Solutions, Inc will allow us to seek further funding to roll out our Mineseeker program over the next five years”
“More significantly, as a result of deploying Mineseeker technology, there is a significant humanitarian benefit. Working closely with Governments, funding and development agencies, we will be able to deploy the technology and rapidly clear land of unexploded ordnance. We then return this land back to local communities in partnerships, turning land that was previously worthless into valuable land and offering commercial opportunities to participate in. Typically this could be in areas such as the harvesting of coconuts, or liberating oil, gas and mineral deposits. Not only does this return the land to economic use, but it also empowers local communities to harvest and grow their own crops whilst becoming self-sufficient”.
Kendrick continued; “This is a real and significant development towards making emerging post conflict countries self sufficient and less reliant on global food aid programs. These programs have collectively cost Governments and the UN trillions of dollars in food aid since they first began after the Second World War. In 2010 the UN World Food program requested US $6.77 billion in food aid from member countries, US$3.7 billion was pledged, but only US$1.8 billion was actually provided. Despite the food aid programs spanning more than fifty years and costing trillions of US dollars, we still haven’t solved the global famine crisis. Surely it’s now time for us to re-think this problem and look at an alternative solution? I believe this is a land based wealth creation program delivering “Compassionate Capitalism” for the benefit of all.”
Mineseeker’s technology will have a major and significant impact on landmine detection and clearance. Millions of people are affected by the proliferation of landmines and unexploded ordnance. Moreover, hundreds of thousands of square miles of land in war torn and post conflict countries are unavailable for food production, clean water is inaccessible, and roads and paths rendered impassable. During periods of heavy rainfall, landmines are liable to float away in the floods and relocate in unknown areas. Lack of available food and water supplies are just two of the many adverse consequences of landmines that can lead to other disasters including famine and aid-dependency. Landmines represent a major man-made disaster of a magnitude greater than the 2004 Asian Tsunami, the Pakistan earthquake and the ongoing Ethiopian famine combined.
Mineseeker, through its business unit Aid Free Zones, which is headed up by South African entrepreneur Eric Du Plessis, then works with Governments and land owners to develop economically sustainable solutions through its program of “Compassionate Capitalism”. “This delivers wealth in partnership with the local population thereby removing their reliance on food aid handouts, making communities self sufficient and driving self wealth generation with displaced populations.” says Eric Du Plessis, CEO for Aid Free Zone Southern Africa.
NOTES TO EDITORS
Kendrick, a compassionate entrepreneur, launched his not-for-profit Mineseeker Foundation in 2001 which was created to promote the detection, identification and removal of Landmines across the world; a cause which was close to the heart of the late Princess Diana who was an ardent campaigner against landmines. Mineseeker Foundation recruited founder Patrons Nelson Mandela and Sir Richard Branson, and then added Queen Noor Of Jordan, Lord Richard Attenborough and Hollywood actor Brad Pitt as its supporters, all of whom Kendrick personally lobbied.
Mineseeker works in conjunction with Governments, funding and development agencies, as well as local partnerships to create a land based wealth creation program, delivering compassionate capitalism for the benefit of all stakeholders
AID FREE ZONES are created when Mineseeker technology is used to prove that an area is free from the threat of landmines, thereby increasing the land available for the economic benefit of the local population. This enables local businesses to develop in partnership with Aid Free Zones in areas such as agriculture, tourism, mineral exploitation and construction.
Aid Free Zones will dramatically change the Global Food Aid programme by building economically viable communities to become self sufficient, so that they do not rely on food aid, but rather on support to develop their own business models by creating a market for products and resources.
One such success story of the Aid Free Zones is in Inhambane Province, Mozambique where Mineseeker, in local partnership with Aid Free Zone Southern Africa, is using an existing coconut plantation and has set up a processing factory. The factory was pioneered by South African entrepreneur Eric Du Plessis of Hende Wayela over the last few years, with them now forming a partnership with Mineseeker to create the first Aid Free Zone. The processing centre has been able to develop a diversified product portfolio including crude oil, as well as higher valued products such as virgin coconut oil, desiccated coconut and coconut cake. These products are for human and animal consumption as well as raw materials for use in the cosmetics industry. The Aid Free Zones are planning to plant and cultivate new plantations in the very near future.
After a review by the company’s independent accounting and auditing firm, Aid Free Zone Southern Africa has announced that its certified revenues for the coconut processing factory for August 2011 were $85,054. Its auditors also confirmed the revenue forecast of $4.5m for 2012 as accurate and reasonable in all material respects, making Aid Free Zone South Africa, a huge success story and testament to Compassionate Capitalism.
For more information on Mineseeker
For more information on the works of the Minseeker Foundation
For further information on Mineseeker, The Mineseeker Foundation & Mike Kendrick
For US and UK : Contact: Gerard Franklin & Margaret Murray @ Frequency Media
(44) 0 121 262 3891 - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it." or (44) 0 121 262 3893 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For South Africa : Kai Von Pannier (27) 82 926 3425 – This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
