A delegation of the UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) on Tuesday 18 March took part in a sensitisation meeting in the village of Pantroya, Bakoubly Sub Prefecture in the Toulepleu division, 650 km west of Abidjan.



The meeting, initiated by the Sub Prefect of Bakoubly, Kwame Ourega discussed the issues of rural lands, peace and reconciliation, civil registry, gender-based violence, voluntary arms depositing, the return of refugees, child protection, the principle of gender equality and refraining from taking the law into one's hands.



Several UNOCI Offices were represented at the meeting as well as the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), partners including the National Commission for the fight against the proliferation of illicit arms (COMNAT-ALP),

the Red Cross and the divisional Department of Agriculture.

UNOCI's Civil Affairs representative, Komlan Adadjo called on the population to encourage their relatives in exile in Liberia to return home and take an active part in the national reconciliation process and in the development of the village.



The Sub Prefect welcomed UNOCI and other partners for supporting the meeting. "Your presence illustrates your commitment to assist the Ivorian government in this phase of its development," he said. He pointed out the improvement in the security situation and the role played by UNOCI in the restoration of peace in the Sub Prefecture. "Now is the time to work for the consolidation of what has been achieved so far and to strengthen social cohesion by being united and showing solidarity," he concluded.



The divisional Director of Agriculture, Michel Boua revisited the burning issue of land which is a source of conflict and asked the population to establish land certificates, reminding them of the 1998 law and expressing the wish to set up a village committee to peacefully resolve land disputes.

The representative of , Sylver Koffi Tiedo called on those still in illegal possession of arms to hand them over. He proceeded to set up a village security committee that would settle inter- personal, inter-communal and land conflicts, sensitise the population on the consequences of illegal possession of arms, the collecting of illegal arms and reporting to the competent authorities the discovery of any arms cache.



The Chief of Pantroya village, Georges Claver Gbehe thanked the visiting delegation for honouring his village, saying the discussions were very useful and would permit the village to consolidate peace and understanding. He enumerated a number of concerns to the local administration including the construction of a school, boreholes for drinking water, rural electrification, civil registry and a health centre. He stressed the need for temporary shelters that were destroyed during the armed conflict to be repaired for use by returning refugees.