ACCRA, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire on Tuesday announced the establishment of a joint commission to implement the ruling by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) on the delimitation of their maritime boundaries.
The agreement was reached at the end of a two-day official state visit by Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara to Ghana.
Both Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo and his Ivorian counterpart expressed their commitments to ensure the smooth implementation of the ITLOS ruling and indicated that the composition of the joint committee would be decided later.
The ITLOS last month rejected Cote d'Ivoire's claims that Ghana had infringed its sovereign boundary in oil exploration within a disputed zone.
The Hamburg-based tribunal prescribed new coordinates for the demarcation of the maritime boundary between the two countries.
Akufo-Addo and Ouattara also agreed to work closely on a win-win strategy for a sustainable cocoa industry, pledging to work together to enhance border security to curb the smuggling of cocoa.
Addressing the press after both sides signed six Memoranda of Understanding (MOU), Akufo-Addo said it was obvious that if Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire remained in harmony and were determined to work together, the benefits would inure to the wider group in West Africa, not just to both populations.
"We should, and can be and I believe that now we are making it clear to the world that we are determined to be the vehicles that make possible for the greater cooperation and integration of the people of West Africa," he said.
