The United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), on Wednesday, 16 July 2014, organised a sensitisation session with villagers in Banguehi, situated at 537 km northwest of Abidjan, on social cohesion and respect for human rights. The activity was organised in collaboration with its partners the NGO Bonne Action and the Ivorian Ministry of Agriculture.

In his presentation, Pierre Aby from UNOCI's Public Information Office reminded participants that "{gender-based violence, such as forced marriage, physical attacks and impunity linked to raped should be banished from your respective communities}".

For his part, Abdoulaye Touré of the United Nations Police told the gathering that without peace, development was impossible. "{We are working to re-establish the rule of law, which is why UNOCI wants to ensure that the security forces respect human rights while carrying out their duties,}" he added.



Lieutenant Mehrab from the Bangladeshi Contingent explained the mandate of UNOCI's Military Force, which involves protection of civilians and initiating humanitarian actions such as free medical consultations for the well-being of the people, among other activities.

Speaking on behalf of the NGO Bonne Action, Jonas Siekpo stressed the fact that the village chief must be informed of any problems in his locality. "{The involvement of the village chief should contribute to maintaining social cohesion,}" he added.



Issues of land ownership was the focus of the presentation made by Teya Koffi, a representative of the Ministry of Agriculture. He told villagers, the transfer or assignment of land by men as well as women is recognised by the land ownership law of 1998.

After the presentations by members of the delegation, the chief of Banguehi, Joachim Podé, expressed his satisfaction at the fact that people had received a lot of relevant information during the encounter. He urged participants to be true to themselves and work for peace. Mr. Podé also seized the occasion to plead with local authorities to provide potable water and electricity in his village.