An ambitious plan to demolish the North's "peace" walls within a decade will be announced by the British government later.

The economic deal comes just 3 days before the country hosts the G8 summit of world leaders.

Erected temporarily to keep communities apart, the barriers have become a permanent blot on the landscape.

But there is oppositon to demolishing the walls, one man - walking his dog along the interface in west Belfast said: "We need to deal with the mental barriers here before we can think about removing the physical ones."

In a peace-line coffee shop nearby, an older man added: "The people, rather than the politicians or the paramilitaries, will decide when it's the right time to remove walls."

According to the Belfast Interface Projects, there are 99 dividing walls that city alone. Some of them are 18 feet high. They attract tourists from all over the world.

Recent tension over flags revealed a distinct lack of progress on integration. Northern Ireland's political leaders have since published their "shared future" initiative, a scheme now endorsed by the British government.

UK Prime Minister David Cameron said: "This agreement is a symbol of our ambitious vision for Northern Ireland - a genuinely shared society that is fulfilling its economic potential and strengthening the foundations for peace, stability and prosperity for the future."

Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers added: "The pact will help Northern Ireland to compete in the global race for jobs and investment and underpin our efforts to tackle community divisions."

Other measures include an investment plan to deliver capital funding and support frontline projects, targeted support to promote new private sector jobs and initiatives to drive investment in infrastructure, promote new businesses and boost tourism.

The economic and integration pact for Northern Ireland will be formally announced when First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness meet David Cameron in Downing Street.