The Colombian and Ecuadorean foreign ministers announced an agreement Monday to restructure the bi-national border integration commission and plans to assist 54,000 Colombian refugees in Ecuador, reported newspaper El Espectador.
A “memorandum of understanding to restructure the Ecuadorean-Colombian Neighborhood Commission” was signed by Colombian Foreign Minister Maria Angela Holguin and Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patiño Friday in Lima.
According to the Ecuadorean foreign ministry, the re-organization agreement is intended to “improve the functioning of the commission.”
The neighboring countries reactivated the commission in November 2010 when diplomatic relations were re-established. Ecuador broke off relations with Colombia in 2008 following a Colombian raid on a FARC camp on Ecuadorean soil.
The mission of the border integration commission, according to Patiño, is to “promote integration, cooperation and bi-national development, with an emphasis on the border zone.”
The ministers also assessed the status of 54,000 Colombian refugees who fled the armed conflict in Colombia for Ecuador. An assistance plan is reportedly under review.