By Jonah Fisher BBC, Asmara

The Eritrean Government has told the Halo Trust - the biggest demining organisation working in the country to leave.

The new Eritrean demining authority is yet to start any new operations

In August last year the government ordered the other de-mining groups to cease operations saying they could do the job better themselves.

It is thought that tens of thousands of mines cover the border areas between Ethiopia and Eritrea following the war between them which ended in 2000.

Nearly 100 Eritreans, many of them children, have been killed by mines and unused ammunition since the border conflict ended.

Over 600 square kilometres of minefields litter the area where the countries fought - laid by the rival armies as they defended their positions.

Temporary reprieve

When the war ended, international agencies moved in eager to contribute money and know-how to making the land safe and helping displaced people return to their villages.

We have the national capability Eritrean spokesman

Demining is a slow and laborious process though - sometimes it takes many months to clear a small patch of land.

But in the summer of 2002 the government here decided that things could be going faster and told the demining organisations to leave.

In their place an Eritrean demining authority was set up.

The UK-based Halo Trust though were granted a last minute reprieve and announced ambitious plans to expand to fill the gap left by the other deminers.

That reprieve has proved temporary and they have now been given until the end of the month to cease operations.

Slow rate

Justifying the decision, a spokesman for the new authority said Eritrea could now demine for itself.

"We have the national capability," he said.

"Demining should be under national ownership and not done by an international organisation."

So far this capability has yet to show itself, with Eritrea's demining authority yet to begin any mine-clearing operations. At present the rate of demining in Eritrea is just 25% of what it was a year ago.

With the Halo Trust leaving that rate will more than half again.