A two-day tripartite meeting of security personnel of neighbouring Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana has ended in Kombissiri, Burkina Faso, with a call on authorities of participating countries to strengthen closer relationship in dealing with trans-border crimes.

The meeting was to develop new perspectives and strategies for practical trans-border cooperation in the area of security, free movement of goods and people, child trafficking, drug smuggling and small arms proliferation. Authorities of the Savanna region of Togo, Central East Region of Burkina Faso and the Upper East region of Ghana have since September 2009 been meeting annually to develop new approaches to effectively fight high banditry, trans-border crimes and ultimately promote cohesion and peaceful coexistence between the three countries.

Speaking at the opening of the meeting at the weekend, Burkinabe Minister of Territorial Administration and Security, Dr Jerome Bougma, noted that trans-border crimes such as the proliferation of small arms and weapons in the West African sub-region stifled the socio-economic development of countries.

He said engagements like annual tripartite meetings, offers the three regions the opportunity to deliberate on the way forward in dealing with trans-border crimes such as the proliferation of small arms to further promote integration in the sub-region.

Dr Bougma said the dangers of illicit proliferation of small arms in the West-African sub-region were enormous and appealed to security agencies in the three countries to collaborate effectively in dealing with the menace.

He said: “Most conflicts in West Africa are facilitated by the illegal importation and exportation of these illegal small arms”, and called on countries in West Africa to continue with the collaboration to curb the use of arms.

Mrs Lucy Awuni, Upper East Deputy Regional Minister , led a delegation of security personnel including officials from the Ghana Police Service, Customs Exercise and Preventive Service, Ghana Immigration Service and the Bureau of National Investigations.

She expressed optimism that collaborations among the three countries would be fortified to check trans-boundary crimes and improve trade relations. Mrs Awuni said collaborations between security agencies led to the arrest of criminals seeking refuge in other neighbouring countries and cited the arrest of Kombian, a notorious Ghanaian criminal, in neighbouring Togo.

Mr Allahidi Diallo, Governor of the Central East Region of Burkina Faso, and Governor of the South East Province of Burkina, Madam Tchombiano Maimouna, both expressed gratitude to Ghana and Togo for their efforts and renewed commitment in ensuring that trans-border crimes were reduced to the barest minimum.

The Kassena Nankana Municipal Police commander, ASP Abdul-Latif Nbonwura, a participant, in an interview with the GNA said the meeting had enhanced his capacity in the fight against trans-border crimes.

He said the emerging trends of trans-border crimes called for serious attention, and that the reinforcement of regulations by security agencies from the three countries was the way forward.

ASP Abdul-Latif Nbonwura said that the movement of livestock, especially cattle, had become a threat to society and that “the activities of some Fulani herdsmen pose a serious threat to the security of the country. Some of them have fomented trouble in parts of the country with many crop farms devastated by the cattle of these herdsmen”.