A joint political committee comprising of Sudanese and South Sudanese officials announced on Tuesday that the border demarcation process will begin this month with the intention of ending disputes over territorial integrity.

The group agreed to form a specialised joint committee for border demarcation in addition to establishing a common fund so as to ensure equal implementation and finance responsibility between the governments.

The secretary of the demarcation committee, Al-Maiz Farouk, said that the demarcation process has become a reality and will follow schedules laid out in the implementation matrix relating to last September’s agreement.

The border committee have agreed to work in collaboration with African Union experts and submit their reports to the presidents of South Sudan and Sudan.

Al-Maiz also confirmed the commitment of the two parties in carrying out the technical and logistical responsibilities involved in the process during April and May in order to adhere to the matrix’s timeframe.

The two parties formed an implementation matrix last month, finally pledging to carry out activities outlined in last September’s cooperative agreement on security and oil.  As a result, they have already demilitarised their shared border and agreed to resume the production of oil which will be processed in and sold on from Port Sudan.