Senegal reopens border

Guinea-Bissau and Senegal reopened their border on Saturday after ministerial-level negotiations in which they also vowed to stop armed bands from raiding communities in the area, the state-owned ‘Le Soleil’ newspaper in Dakar reported.

Delegations from the two countries, headed by their interior ministers, Mamadou Niang of Senegal and Arthur Sanha of Guinea-Bissau, also created a joint commission to identify and recover the possessions of Senegalese border communities stolen by armed bandits who, villagers said, came from Guinea-Bissau. The villagers at Fouladou, 25 km north of the frontier, closed the border for nearly one month to try to prevent the raids. The measure raised tension between the two countries and caused a fuel and food shortage in Guinea-Bissau, much of whose imports pass through Senegal.

The two countries have also agreed that their interior ministers will meet every three months and the governors of border regions every two months to review the situation and help build a climate of confidence.

“A new high commission has been created in Guinea-Bissau to monitor and secure the border,” Niang told the media. “As soon as we are informed of its composition, we will also create a similar body in Senegal.”