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The solemn ceremony was observed by delegates from the countries concerned, the international community and witness states.

The Cameroonian delegation which signed the document of transfer of authority was led by the Minister Delegate in the Ministry of Justice, Maurice Kamto. Other members of the delegation included the Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Justice and Keeper of the Seals, Ahmadou Ali, and External Relations Minister, Henry Eyebe Ayissi, as well as some prominent figures of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission.

The Nigerian delegation was led by its Artouney General and Minister of Justice and composed of top government officials including high profile military personnel and the Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ojo Maduekwe.

The UN Secretary General, Ban ki-Moon, sent a message congratulating Cameroon and Nigerian on their incessant efforts in solving their dispute peacefully.

Also, present at the ceremony were representatives of the four witness countries of the Greentree Accord; Germany, Great Britain, France and the United States of America.

The transfer of authority which took place in Calabar is a culmination of intensive diplomatic efforts undertaken to peacefully end the border crisis between Cameroon and Nigeria.

One of the key elements to the peaceful resolution of the conflict includes the verdict of the International Court of Justice on 10th October 2002 ruling that the disputed region belongs to the Republic of Cameroon.

The most recent international diplomacy effort ended with the signing of the Greentree Agreement on the 12 June 2006 signed by President Paul Biya of Cameroon, former Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo, under the auspices of former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, in the presence of four witness countries.

The final handing over ceremony concretises the Greentree Accord thus bringing to a happy end a long story of land and maritime dispute between two brotherly neighbours, Cameroon and Nigeria.

However, the handover process has been dogged by threats of attacks by an armed group opposed to the transfer.

It should be recalled that two years ago, the Nigerian government agreed to transfer Bakassi, in line with a 2002 International Court of Justice ruling, which said the area belonged to Cameroon.

However, most residents of the peninsula - predominantly Nigerian fishermen and their families - oppose the transfer of sovereignty on the 1000-square-kilometer land. A Nigerian rebel group launched two attacks on Cameroonian soldiers in Bakassi, last month, and is threatening further violence.
Security was beefed up for Thursday’s ceremony.

Opponents of the change argue the agreement to hand over the territory was never ratified by the parliament, as required by the constitution.

The Action Congress, one Nigeria’s top opposition parties, says the transfer can only be deemed legitimate if it is endorsed by the national assembly. Lai Mohammed speaks for the party.

The two nations almost went to war over the peninsula, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas, in the 1990s. Cameroon first took its case to the International Court of Justice in The Hague in 1994.