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Ghana and Cameroon are to establish a Permanent Joint Commission under which, Ghana will explore the possibility of importing logs, sawn timber and veneer from Cameroon to feed mills in Ghana and identify areas of collaboration to promote bilateral trade in timber. The Commission is being established in pursuit of the International Tropical Timber Organisation�s (ITTO) vision of promoting intra-African trade in timber and timber products. It will also expand the scope of bilateral relations between the two countries with the view to promoting forestry and other sectors of their economies in the spirit of south-south co-operation. These were contained in a statement issued in Accra yesterday by the Public Relations Director of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr. Charles Wereko. The statement said technical teams from both countries would be constituted to develop a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance trade and exchange of experiences in the timber industry. It said Mr. Mike Hammah, Sector Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, would sign the MOU on behalf of the Government of Ghana while Ngole Philip Ngwese, Minister of Forestry and Wildlife of Cameroon, would initial on behalf of the Cameroon government. The statement said the modalities on the bilateral co-operation on timber and timber products were fashioned out in Yaounde between the government of Ghana and Cameroon during Mr. Hammah�s three-day official visit to Cameroon. It said Mr. Hammah also held a number of working sessions with other high ranking officials of the Cameroonian government on issues of mutual benefits to both countries. The statement said at the meetings, Mr. Hammah and his Cameroonian counterparts reiterated their commitment to deepen the bonds of friendship and re-dedicated themselves to promoting economic development in both countries within the framework of South-South co-operation. It said the meeting agreed to create an enabling environment for private sector collaboration to foster the building of joint venture partnership among operators in both countries to enhance the growth and development of their respective forestry sectors. Additionally, the statement said, modalities would be evolved to forge collaboration in the areas of research and development of timber and timber products, particularly lesser known timber species to bolster the timber industry in both countries. It said at a meeting with Executive of Chamber of Agriculture, Fishery, Livestock and Forestry, opportunities in the Cameroon forestry sector were highlighted while the Minister of External relations re-echoed the establishment of a permanent joint Commission to enhance the relationship between Ghana and Cameroon through regular consultations on issues of mutual interest. As part of the visit, Mr. Hammah toured the autonomous port of Douala and three timber processing plants. He was accompanied by Mr. Albert Abongo and Mr. Andrew Adjei-Yeboah, chairman and ranking Member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Lands and Forestry respectively and Mr. Alhassan-Atta, Executive Director of the Timber Industry Development Division of the Forestry Commission and others from both public and private sectors.