Ghana shares maritime boundaries with Côte d’Ivoire to the West and Togo, Benin, and Nigeria to the East. The Commission’s focus in terms of maritime boundary operations has centred on negotiations with the Republic of Togo on a long-standing maritime dispute between the two countries. Additionally, in the spirit of good neighbourliness and cross-border cooperation, the Commission and the National Boundary Commission of Nigeria have held discussions on joint processes towards the proper delimitation of the common maritime boundary between the two countries as well as their overlapping Continental Shelf beyond the Exclusive Economic Zone.
The Maritime Boundary Technical Committee
The Commission has a Maritime Boundary Technical Committee, mandated by the Act 1123 to:
a. Deal with matters affecting the maritime borders of Ghana;
b. Participate in the delimitation of international maritime boundaries in accordance with the delimitation instrument or document for that purpose;
c. Proffer solutions to international maritime boundary disputes;
d. Promote trans-border cooperation and border area development; and
e. Make recommendations to the Board on international maritime boundary matters.
Membership of the Land Boundary Technical Committee
The Maritime Boundary Technical Committee consists of:
a. The Commissioner-General as chairperson;
b. One representative, each from the following, not below the rank of a Director or an equivalent rank:
(i) The Ministry responsible for Foreign Affairs nominated by the Minister responsible for Foreign Affairs;
(ii) The Ministry responsible for National Security nominated by the Minister responsible for National
Security;
(iii) The Ministry responsible for Fisheries and Aquaculture nominated by the Minister responsible for Fisheries and Aquaculture;
(iv) The Petroleum Commission, nominated by the Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Commission;
(v) The Ghana National Petroleum Corporation, nominated by the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation; and
(vi) The Ghana Maritime Authority, nominated by the Director-General of the Ghana Maritime Authority;
(c) One representative of the Ghana Armed Forces not below the rank of Colonel or an equivalent rank nominated by the Chief of Defence Staff;
(d) One representative of the Attorney-General not below the rank of Chief State Attorney nominated by the Attorney-General;
e) The Director of the Survey and Mapping Division of the Lands Commission; and
(f) Two other persons nominated by the Commission, one of whom is a woman.
The Committee has been actively engaged in maritime dispute negotiations since 2021 and have hosted and participated in a series of meetings to deliberate on issues related to the Commission’s mandate.
Resolution of Maritime Boundary Disputes
Resolving the long-standing maritime dispute between Ghana and the Republic of Togo has been the primary focus of the Commission since its full operationalization in 2021. GhBC re-initiated negotiations, which had stalled for a considerable period of time, with Togo and has since then made significant progress towards amicably arriving at a consensus. Below summarizes GhBC’s headway towards amicably settling Ghana’s maritime dispute with Togo.
Resolution of Maritime Boundary Disputes
Resolving the long-standing maritime dispute between Ghana and the Republic of Togo has
been the primary focus of the Commission since its full operationalization in
2021. GhBC re-initiated negotiations, which had stalled for a considerable
period of time, with Togo and has since then made significant progress towards
amicably arriving at a consensus. Below summarizes GhBC’s headway towards amicably
settling Ghana’s maritime dispute with Togo.
· Maritime dispute between Ghana and Togo surface in 2018.
· The dispute leads to a halt in all fishing and oil exploration activities and
operations along the disputed area.
· Formation of the Joint Ghana-Togo Maritime Technical Committee in early 2021 comprising
both Ghanaian and Togolese Officials. Negotiations re-initiated.
· Joint Maritime Technical Committee jointly agree on a road map to resolving the
dispute.
· Formation of the Joint Ghana-Togo Maritime Technical Sub-Committee also comprising of
Ghanaian and Togolese Officials. The Sub-Technical Committee is charged with
the responsibility of collating and preparing all technical inputs required to
direct deliberations at the Joint Maritime Technical Committee Meetings.
· Coordinates of the Land Boundary Terminus between Ghana and Togo, an important pillar for
determining the starting point for delimiting the maritime boundary and mostly
referred to Pillar 1, is agreed on.
· The Nautical Chart, baseline and starting point for delimiting the maritime
boundary between the two countries was also agreed on in the latter parts of
2021.
Maritime Boundary Facts
