The head of African Union liaison office in Sudan has said that demarcation of the common border between Sudan and South Sudan was never meant to encourage division, but rather to settle disputes and resolve common border problems.
Meetings of the joint border demarcation committee started on Sunday and they are expected to conclude today in Khartoum.
Speaking to the Sudanese Media Centre (SMC), the AU official Mahmud Khan reportedly said that the joint meeting discussed establishment of a joint fund to finance the demarcation process.
He emphasized the support of the African Union to the governments of the two countries until an agreement on the border demarcation is reached as soon as possible.
Khan pointed out that they are looking forward to the two sides agreeing on demarcation of 80% of their borders.
He further said the Union’s border program and its specialized team on border demarcation have been supporting both sides during their meetings in Khartoum.
The AU representative disclosed that they supported the joint committee with a team of three experts in the field of border demarcation.
The SMC reported that the joint border demarcation committee meetings are discussing the establishment of a joint fund in order to finance the demarcation process and a joint mobilization of funds from donors.
File photo: A meeting of the joint committee in Addis Ababa last month