The UN Secretary General's Humanitarian Envoy for the Crisis in Cote d'Ivoire, Ms Carolyn McAskie, has warned that the conflict situation in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire would prove disastrous to countries in the sub-region, including Ghana, if the crisis is allowed to degenerate into a full scale war.

Ms McAskie has since left Accra for Burkina Faso after a three day official visit to Ghana. She told journalists after a meeting with Diplomats that the situation in Cote d'Ivoire on Ghana poses humanitarian and economic responsibilities that can impact negatively on the country's fragile economy. She said it is estimated that about 40,000 people have so far crossed the border into Ghana since the beginning of the conflict. In addition to this number, she said four thousand people are known to have applied for political asylum in Ghana.

On the economic side, Ms McAskie said although there have been some short-term economic benefits as a result of the mass exodus of people and goods through the ports and the roads in Ghana, the long term negative effects, would be enormous if it continues into the next few months. She explained that the instability could scare potential foreign investors away from the sub-region and this would also affect Ghana which needs large foreign capital to accelerate its development agenda.

She said there is already a difficult humanitarian situation building up in Cote d'Ivoire as a result of the conflict which requires urgent attention. Schools have been closed down and thousands of people have been internally displaced. The persecution of foreigners and the outbreak of diseases like cholera in the north are giving cause for much concern.

She appealed to West African leaders to intensify their efforts in the search for lasting peace and prevent the conflict from degenerating into a full scale war that could destabilize the entire region. Efforts should also be made to improve the situation in countries like Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. "My message to the leaders is that there can be no social and economic stability without political stability."

During her visit to Ghana, the UN Humanitarian envoy held meetings with the Vice President, Alhaji Aliu Mahama, government officials, heads of UN agencies, the diplomatic community and NGOs involved in humanitarian work. Her main objectives are to secure commitments from warring parties for humanitarian access to all people in need of assistance, protection of civilians, respect for all humanitarian personnel including their safety and security. She is also expected to identify gaps in donor support and seek ways to address them through dialogue between donors, governments and agencies.