Lands Minister calls for concrete steps to manage land borders

The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Samuel A. Jinapor has called for a collective effort to effectively and efficiently manage the land borders of the country as Africa marks Africa Border Day.

"Let us continue to work towards effective and efficient border management, and not make our borders barriers that divide us, but bridges that connect us and promote peace, security, and development for our nations and our continent"

Delivering a statement on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday, 7th June, 2023 in commemoration of the thirteenth (13th) African Border Day, the Minister said "An efficient and effective border management is sine qua non to our noble and historic quest to provide a secured continent to enable us unleash prosperity for the long-suffering peoples of Africa. Particularly, given that, for us here in Africa, our border lines were drawn without our consent and involvement, and without regard to our cultural, traditional and political heritage, boundary issues will remain key to our security, and peaceful coexistence" He stressed.

Giving a brief background on the reason for the celebration of the day, Hon. Jinapor said the African Border Day was adopted by African Ministers in charge of Border Issues, at their second Meeting held in 2010, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to promote the importance of the African Union Border Programme (AUBP) to peace, regional, and continental integration.

The African Day he said is also used to celebrate the progress Africa has made, individually as member states of the African Union, and collectively as a continent, in securing and managing boundaries of the various countries, and to forge a common path for dealing with the challenges that still lie ahead.

The Minister opined that this year’s African Border Day celebration is a very significant one as it calls on all of Africa to reflect on the importance of the borders to national and regional security, stability, and sustainable development.

The Minister also noted that boundaries are not just physical barriers that separate countries; they are complex systems that require effective management, coordination, and cooperation among all stakeholders.

"As a continent, our efforts at promoting peace, stability, and prosperity along borders, continue to be hindered by several challenges, such as transnational organized crime, terrorism, violent extremism, smuggling, and irregular migration."

" It was to deal with these challenges, accelerate work on cross-border cooperation and peaceful resolution of border disputes, as well as promote efficient and effective integrated border management, that the African Union Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation (also known as the Niamey Convention), was adopted in 2014" He continued.

Hon. Jinapor, therefore, appreciated the efforts of the Members of Parliament for their cooperation which saw to the swift ratification of the African Union Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation in the First Meeting of the Third Session of this Parliament.

He also thanked all the security services that have been involved in the exercise. "As we commemorate this day, let us renew our commitment to working together to overcome the challenges confronting our borders. Let us promote greater cooperation among our countries, regional organizations, and international partners to ensure that our borders are secure, stable, and conducive for the prosperity of the African peoples"

Minister Jinapor highly commended the Ghana Boundary Commission, under the leadership of its tenacious Coordinator, Major General Emmanuel W. Kotia, for the hard work they are doing to secure, demarcate and delimit the international boundaries in accordance with the Ghana Boundary Commission Act, 2010 (Act 795).