• Residents turn to smuggling for survival
• Bandits halt farming as prices of food soar
• Traditional rulers bemoan extortion by security agents

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.

Speaking on how the border closure has negatively affected his business, a laundry owner and resident of Jibia, Musa Ahmed, 46, said before now, he used to have several customers, but the number has drastically reduced.

He said: “Before the border was closed, I was making between N5,000 and N6,000 per day. On market days, I declined to take clothes from customers and direct them to other neighbouring shops that offer similar services. But nowadays, I make less than N1,000 per day, and can even go for days without patronage.”

A resident of Mai’Adua town, Abdulmalik Suleiman, 32, who is a commercial driver, said before the border was closed, he used to make as much as N10,000 per day whenever he ferried goods and passengers across the border, but now he hardly makes N2,000 per day from plying Daura instead of Niger.

He disclosed that the profit margin would have been higher, but for the security operatives that mount several roadblocks to collect money from the commercial drivers.

For Aminu Dankama, 30, a commercial motorcycle rider and resident of Dankama, his prayer always is for the borders to be reopened soon and for him to return to his cross-border trade.

According to him, “We used to move people and goods within the community and across the border, and we make as much as N7,000 per day. We even made more during our market days, which falls on a Wednesday. But now, we just sit under a tree and wait for passengers coming from Katsina town to ferry them into town. The highest they pay is about N200 per trip; you count yourself lucky if you get five passengers that pay such an amount in a day,” he said.

Chairman of the Market Association in Jibia, Ali Customs, while lamenting the effect of the closure on trade and commerce in the community, said before now, Jibia market used to be filled with activities of both buyers and sellers from Nigeria and Niger Republic.

“We are not happy with what is going on now as the situation has affected us and many others in the area. When you don’t make a profit from your business, how do you expect your social life to thrive?” he added.

The leading traditional ruler of Jibia, Sarkin Arewa and Hakimin Jibia, Alhaji Rabe Rabiu, said the situation has brought untold hardship on his people, as most of them depend on the movement of people and goods through the border to earn their living.

According to him, “Our people are now jobless due to the closed border. They are redundant and because of this, they cannot adequately take care of their family and loved ones. It is only when a man can work that he can bring food to the table for his family.”

But, while economic hardship stared them in the face, some youths in the affected border towns have taken to smuggling goods through illegal routes known as hanya barawo.

Though the routes are bumpy, risky, and dangerous. Some of the smugglers are easy prey for the bandits and Boko Haram terrorists, who killed them either as a shield to escape from the attacks of Nigerian soldiers or when they did not find any cash on them.

Kabir Kankia told The Guardian that some of his fellow smugglers had been killed by the bandits while crossing from Jibia to Niger and carted away all the goods they were ferrying to that country.

The Guardian identified several illegal routes leading to Niger, especially in Kursa and Mazanya in Jibia town. In Sokoto, smugglers cross to the next-door neighbouring towns and villages like Tabanni, Gidan Ketsu, Munganka, Kesguda and Kasheni, to escape scrutiny of security agents.

In Katsina State, communities where such illegal routes are found in Mai’adua council, include Makerawa, Kadangwaras, Unguwar-Jibo, Unguwar Jummai, Bumbum, Dankindi and Kalansami.

These routes link up with border communities in the Niger Republic, some of which include Maimujiya, Unguwar Jummai ta Nijar, Kalansami, Kuma, and Botsotsuwa.

Some of the goods smuggled to Nigeria through hanya barawo include foreign rice, groundnut oil, and pharmaceutical products, especially sexual enhancement pills, tiger nuts, and canned food items.

On the other hand, items ferried from Katsina communities to the Niger Republic are mostly agricultural produce like maize, beans, groundnut, wood, varieties of plastic material, and domestic animals.

Ironically, some of such routes have the presence of security operatives, including Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), but their presence didn’t deter the movement of the motorcyclists transporting contraband.

Adamu Aliyu and other smugglers said they would do “anything” to survive.

He said, “I used to charge N50,000 per trip but it’s now N120,000 because I bribe police, customs officers, NDLEA, joint task force and border guards in Niger.”

How much does it cost smugglers in Katsina to bribe the border guards? He said: “The officials charge us 9,000 CFA. You can meet up to five checkpoints before getting to Niger, and you will pay at least 9,000 CFA to bribe them.”

Another smuggler, Sani Jabita, confirmed that they pay border officials to turn a blind eye. Konni, their nearest destination in Niger is barely five kilometres from the Ilela border town in Sokoto. However, the Niger authorities did not shut its borders with Nigeria, making it easy for smugglers to explore without hindrance.

It is a common sight to see a caravan of camels with heavy loads towards the border. Sources disclosed that smugglers use them to convey millet and other goods to Niger without getting noticed by law enforcement agencies.

Ismaila Karu disclosed that using animals in place of vehicles for smuggling is cheaper because “we don’t need to fuel them. We have hundreds of illegal routes leading to Niger. The officials cannot be everywhere. If we notice they are patrolling a route, we pass through another, but we usually meet Niger’s officials.”

Mallam Didiri said that traders who move goods and farm produce from other parts of the country to Mai’adua, were often forced to bribe security operatives before they were allowed to pass.

He said the extortion, which occurs every day had almost led to a protest by some aggrieved persons, but they were later calmed down and dissuaded from acting.

He said, “There are more than 15 security checkpoints from Daura to Mai’adua, which is a 14-kilometer distance. At all these checkpoints, people bribe, even if they were not moving such goods to the Niger Republic.

“Many people in this area are jobless due to the border closure. Some of them have family and relations in Niger Republic that need food items to be taken to them through the border, but this is not possible.”

When The Guardian visited the Maigatari International market, in Jigawa State, on a market day, it was business as usual as findings showed that while the official entrance and exit gates remained closed, illegal routes (barawo hanya) were opened.

Instead of passing through the official routes to access Maigatari from Adare, a neighbouring town of the Niger Republic, smugglers pass through Jobi village to link to Adare. At the same time, camels and cows are used to convey goods from Maigatari through Katakara, a little community, on the outskirts of Maigatari.

According to Nasiru Gambo, “The closure has continued to affect us in several ways, most especially the security checks, which we are not used to before now. You discover that you are thoroughly frisked by security agents on both sides of the border. As a result, we are in some cases forced and passed through illegal routes to reach our destinations.

“What they are doing now is when a vehicle comes from Kano or anywhere going to Niger. They will park within the town and offload the goods to an available warehouse. Our people here will link them with drivers of buses, cars, and motorcyclists or animal owners depending on the distance that will take the goods across the border.”

Chairman, Jibia Peoples Forum, Gide Dahiru said while the border closure has brought hardship to residents and traders in the area, the situation has been compounded by security operatives who extort traders.

According to Dahiru, “local products brought from other parts of Nigeria do not easily get to Jibia because of extortion by security operatives along the Katsina-Jibia highway. We are appealing to the Federal Government to know that Jibia is a local government in Nigeria and people residing there are Nigerians, although some of us have historical links with the Niger Republic.

“The fact remains that we in Jibia are Nigerians and should not be allowed to die of hunger and poverty because of the border closure and the activities of bandits,” he added.

Responding to the allegation of extortion, the spokesperson for the NCS in Katsina State, Tahir Balarabe, said the command was aware of such complaints and had taken measures to address them.

According to him, “The Comptroller-General of Customs, Mr Bashir Adeniyi was in the state some months ago and met with stakeholders at the border communities, including traditional rulers and traders, where they raised concerns about the issue of extortion by security operatives.

“The Comptroller-General assured us that he would put in place measures to address the situation, and he actually went ahead to do so and ensure compliance.”

The Chairman of Arewa Economic Forum (AEF), Ibrahim Dandakata, reckoned that the border closure is hurting Nigerians, noting that Northern Nigerian businessmen are losing N13 billion per week since the closure of the Nigeria-Niger border.

With this disclosure, Nigeria is losing about N52 billion every month totalling N260 billion for the last five months the border was closed.

Dandakata said: “According to 2022 statistics, formal trade between the two countries accounts for $234 million (N171 billion), while informal trade is roughly estimated to be at $683 million (N515 billion), mostly in perishable commodities.”