TENKODOGO, BURKINA FASO, May 13 — Ghana, Togo and Burkina Faso have agreed to foster trans-border relations among them at the end of a three-day workshop held in conjunction with their 5th Trans-Border Tripartite Meeting.
Daniel Syme, the Deputy Upper East Region Minister of Ghana, Colonel Ousmane Traore of Burkina Faso and Yendoukoa Douti Thimbiandja of Togo, jointly signed the communique aimed at promoting peace and trade and enhancing cordial relations among the three countries.
The communiqué incorporates a framework to reinforce cross-border co-operation, peaceful co-existence and the optimization of development activity and decentralization of the trans-border zones of Ghana, Burkina Faso and Togo.
It prioritises security, environment, freedom of movement of people and goods and services and states that social services, including health, education, and agricultural activities, will be encouraged, while forced marriages and other social vices will be discouraged among the countries involved.
The communiqué stresses the need to tackle smuggling of petroleum products and piracy within the three countries since they threaten to the development of economic activities.
Syme called for joint efforts to fight trans-border crimes, including armed robbery, ethnic and chieftaincy conflicts, among others.
Colonel Traore, who is the Governor of Central East Region (Province) of Burkina Faso, called for a stronger bond among the three countries to encourage other countries to join them.
SOURCE: GNA
