Ethiopia, Sudan border commission meeting ends with common agreement

By Tesfa Alem Tekle

January 3, 2010 (MEKELLE) – The 12th Ethiopia-Sudan joint border development commission meeting held in the northern Mekelle town winded up with a number of agreements.

During The 4-day meeting Ethiopia and Sudan have agreed to scale up their cooperation on security, trade, health, agriculture, tourism and other sectors as well.

Both sides have signed an agreement to work together on the control of illegal human trafficking, to control deforestation and also on ways of tackling polio and the spread of AIDS.

Moreover the bordering states of Ethiopia and Sudan have agreed to make the broad forest and wild life laying along the common border for tourism attraction.

The commission has evaluated performance on the implementation of past agreements and set new strategies accepted by both sides.

The next 13th joint meeting was decided to be held in Sudan.

After the meeting, The Sudanese delegation has paid a visit to some industrial sites in Mekelle town and also visited the historic Al-Nejashi mosque, Africa’s first mosque and the burial place of the early followers of prophet Mohamed.

USD 3,000 was also donated by the Sudanese delegation to the mosque.

At the occasion co-chair of the joint border commission and governor of the Blue Nile state, Mr. Malik Agar said that their visit has enabled his delegation to witness that Ethiopia is indeed the symbol of religious tolerance.

(ST)