THE GUARDIAN
About six months after the imposition of economic sanctions on the Niger Republic, life in the border communities across seven Nigerian states is in dire straits.
Checks by The Guardian across Kebbi, Katsina, Sokoto, Zamfara, Jigawa, Yobe and Borno, showed partly deserted border communities where smugglers and bandits alike claim territories, but much to the economic hardship of survivor residents.
It will be recalled that Nigeria severed diplomatic relations with Niger Republic on August 3, 2023, following a military coup led by General Abdlourahamane Tchiani sacking Mohammed Bazoum as the president of the country. The military putsch led the ECOWAS Heads of State to take the punitive decision. President Bola Tinubu is the chairman of the regional body.
Since then, business, and commercial activities between the two neighbouring countries that shared cultural affinities have been halted with tales of woes from citizens residing in border towns.
Particularly hard hit are millions of people in Nigeria’s seven northern states who work in agriculture, the informal sector, or who rely on cross-border trade. While many were not bothered by the new twist of Niger and others pulling out of ECOWAS, the development has been estimated to further worsen what is currently left of the erstwhile thriving border communities.
A visit by The Guardian to the border communities in Baure, Jibia, Kaita, Maiadua, Mashi, and Zango local councils in Katsina State revealed that farming and trading activities have been halted because of the fears of being attacked by militants and strange faces that are seen in their communities, just as many residents have become jobless with an increased number of street beggars.
The situation in the Illela community in Sokoto State and Maigatari in Jigawa State was not different.
These border communities hire labourers from Niger to work in the fields. Retail shops and restaurants that rely on customers coming in from Niger are in a slump. Formal traffic across the border has ground to a halt as Nigerian officials stop vehicles from travelling to the country next door.
Findings revealed that some of the affected states were groaning under harsh economic policies that made prices of foodstuff out of reach for common people in the North.
Earlier in 2023, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) had estimated that 3.3 million people were food-insecure in three states (Borno, Adamawa and Yobe) of the Northeast region and 2.9 million critically so in the Northwest. It also projected that these numbers could rise to 4.4 million and 4.3 million respectively, in the lean season of 2024, if urgent action was not taken.
