The United Nations has commended the work done jointly by the two countries and their renewed commitment to the peaceful resolution of their border dispute.
“The work undertaken by the Cameroon-Nigeria Joint Commission (CNMC) is exemplary. I encourage both delegations to intensify their efforts to finalize the demarcation process (of the border), which is a guarantee of sub-regional stability,” Mahamat Annadif said.
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General, also Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) was speaking yesterday, Thursday August 5, at the end of a four-day working mission during which he visited Abuja (Nigeria) and Yaoundé (Cameroon).
In his capacity as Chairman of the Cameroon-Nigeria Joint Commission (CMCN), Mr. Annadif maintained that “demarcation must be an opportunity for a development program that takes into account the needs and improves the living conditions of the populations concerned.
He also insisted on the need to support the populations living on both sides of the border and to consolidate confidence between them. In doing so, Mahamat Annadif reaffirmed the UN’s support for the two countries, and welcomed the acceptance by both delegations of the holding of a meeting of the CMCN next November to examine the outstanding issues and finalize the delineation project.
Established in November 2001 by the UN Secretary General at the request of Presidents Paul Biya of Cameroon and Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, the CMCN intends to facilitate the implementation of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling of October 10, 2002 on the Cameroon-Nigeria border dispute.
TE/fss/abj/APA