Border security to be reinforced

Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore has ordered that its six borders be reinforced with troops to enhance national security, the head of the army information unit, who declined to be named, told IRIN on Thursday.

He would not say which units and how many men would be needed for the task. Burkina Faso had an army of 5,600 in 1999. AFP quoted army chief of staff Colonel Ali Traore as also declining to give deployment figures but as saying on Tuesday that a unit would be sent to Banfora, on the border with Cote d'Ivoire.

Burkina Faso is not saying if it feels threatened by its neighbours, particularly Cote d'Ivoire. However, its decision follows an announcement by the Ivorian government in August that it would form three more army battalions to safeguard its western, northern and eastern frontiers.

Tension between Burkina Faso and Cote d'Ivoire surfaced in November 1999 when Burkinabe settlers in southwest Cote'Ivoire clashed with the indigenous minority Kru population over land rights, resulting in the death of two people. This then led to the violent expulsion of hundreds of Burkinabe plantation workers by militant Kru. Despite attempts by both governments to play down this and subsequent incidents, unease continues to exist between the two countries.

Apart from Cote d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso shares borders with Benin, Ghana, Mali, Niger and Togo.