African solution in border row
2004-05-14 14:10
Tunis - The African Development Bank said in a statement on Friday that it will fund joint projects between Nigeria and Cameroon that reinforce peace between the two west African neighbours.
The announcement came after the bank hosted a meeting of the tripartite mixed commission set up to draw up an agreed boundary for the 1 690km border between Nigeria and Cameroon, manage land transfers, spur development projects and demilitarise the long-disputed Bakassi peninsula.
The International Court of Justice in the Hague ruled in October 2002 that the peninsula, disputed by the west African neighbours for years and believed to be rich in oil reserves as well as fish stocks, belongs to Cameroon, despite most of its inhabitants being Nigerian.
After initial resistance to the ruling in Nigeria, the two governments agreed to abide by the ICJ edict, and set up the commission to iron out sticking points.
Representatives of Cameroon and Nigeria who attended the meeting in Tunis, which was chaired by UN special envoy to west Africa Ahmed ould Abdallah, requested that the bank finance a project to improve the road linking Mamfe, in northern Cameroon, with Abakaliki, in southern Nigeria.
The road is part of a project to build a trans-African highway and would facilitate trade between the two countries, said the statement issued by the bank.
The Bakassi commission members also asked the bank to contribute to other initiatives aimed at consolidating peace and economic development in Nigeria and Cameroon, and to environmental protection projects.
The chairman of the African Development Bank, Omar Kabbaj, praised Nigeria and Cameroon "for their courage in seeking an African solution to their border problems".