3 COUNTRIES HOLD TRANS-BORDER MEETING (SEPT 21, PAGE 31)

HEADS of Regional Administrations from Ghana, Togo and Burkina Faso, as well as technical officers drawn from ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) in the three countries that share common borders have met in the Burkinabe town of Tenkodogo to share ideas on trans-border co-operation.
The Upper East Region of Ghana, shares borders with the Central East Region of Burkina Faso and the Savannah Region of Togo.
As a result of the common borders, the meeting was initiated by the Burkinabe side, not only to cement the already cordial relations, but also to collaborate with their counterparts in Ghana and Togo on how best to address the common challenges facing the three neighbouring countries.
Dubbed the maiden tripartite trans-border meeting, it seeks to enhance the social and economic ties that exist among these countries.
Ghana’s delegation to the meeting was led by the Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Mark Woyongo, while the team from Togo was led by Mr Mossyamba Ali Seidu, the Head of the Savannah Region, with the Governor of the Central East Region leading the delegation from Burkina Faso.
The specific objectives of the three-day meeting are to reinforce the trans-border cohesion, good neighbourliness, free movement of goods and services among the three nations.
The meeting would also seek to contribute to the attainment of the objectives being pursued by the sub-regional organisations such as ECOWAS and the AU.
In addition, the deliberations will attempt to reinforce the socio-economic development programme being undertaken by the administrative offices of the three regions and contribute to the strengthening of the bond of co-operation between the participating regions.
At the end of the conference, it is expected that the three regions will attain trans-border cohesion and co-existence, free movement of goods and services as well as nurture the bond of friendship among the three countries.
The participants are also expected to exchange experience and ideas in the areas of environment, security, transportation, customs, animal husbandry, commerce, health, eradication of negative cultural practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM), child trafficking and other anti-social practices.
Deliberations would be done in plenary sessions in three thematic groups such as security, environment, free movement of goods and people. Others include social issues such as health, education, forced marriages, FGM and child trafficking.
The rest are economic issues, namely agriculture, transport, commerce, customs and animal husbandry.
A joint communiqué will be signed by the leaders of the three delegations at the end of the session.
On the first day of the summit, members of the delegation of each region paid a courtesy call on the paramount Chief of Tenkodogo, Naaba Saaga, who expressed hope that observance of the summit would help foster unity among the peoples of the three countries.