Stakeholders in the maritime industry said the continuous closure of the land borders is affecting the ease of doing business in the country, as many enterprises have shut down, throwing thousands of people out of jobs.

They said the border closure has not achieved its aim, especially, as the rate of smuggling prohibited items has increased, unlike when the border was open.

They argued the Federal Government only opened its borders with Benin, Cameroun, Chad and Niger in December 2020 for the movement of people while the movement of goods remained blocked.

The stakeholders warned that if the borders are not fully opened, the economy would be negatively affected with impacts on the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) as many African countries may blacklist Nigeria this year 2022.

President of the Association of National Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Tony Nwabunike, said more than 3, 000 businesses have closed, with over 300,000 jobs lost due to the closure of some land borders to trading activities.
According to him, the reduction in trans-border trade contributes to the weakness of the naira.

He said keeping the borders closed where there are no security issues is a sign of non-compliance with the Economic Community of West African Countries (ECOWAS) and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) treaties, of which Nigeria is a signatory.

“And as a country, we should not be signing treaties and agreements we won’t comply with, because compliance concerns all of us. Nigeria, her agencies and private business operators all have a responsibility to be compliant. Let us all build a culture of National integrity on all fronts at home and in the eyes of the global trading community,” he said.

Nwabunike urged the Federal Government to reopen all approved borders, particularly, in the Southwest and other areas with less threat of insurgency, to allow trading activities to resume with its accompanying benefits of economic growth and job creation.

A lecturer at the Nigeria Maritime University (NMU), Okerenkoko, Charles Okorefe, said while Nigeria continues to shut its borders to trading activities, the Port of Lome currently records 30 per cent higher cargo throughput than Lagos ports, as investors and importers prefer to do business in other neighbouring countries.

Okorefe, who is also the author of ABC of Shipping and ports operation in Nigeria, said such imports end up in the Nigerian market despite the continued border closure, which he said has multiplied smuggling.

“This act of “protectionism” itself negates the spirit behind AfCFTA. So, going forward for 2022 and to enhance our presence in the comity of African trading nations, the Federal Government must eat the humble pie by reopening our closed borders. It is hurting our economy,” he said.

A maritime consultant, Olayemi Abass, pointed out that while the government’s prime targets were agricultural produce, finished goods and petroleum products, there is no data to support that the border closure has helped the local industries, especially in terms of import substitution.

“We cannot continue to take extreme measures, which hurts genuine businessmen and run counter to the letter and spirit of treaties and agreements signed by Nigeria. There is a need for concrete inter-agency dialogue with the Organised Private Sector to have a short, medium and long term plan to ensure proper cross border trade facilitation, which will engender security of life and property, improve the ease of doing business and our economy,” he stated.

A former Assistant Controller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Baritor Kpagih, said the border closure has been counterproductive to its aim, especially, as smuggling still persist in Nigeria despite the presence of customs officials.

He said the Benin Republic records a high import volume of parboiled rice cargoes, which are sent to Nigeria for consumption.

He questioned why the 41 import prohibited items flood the Nigerian market despite the presence of the special border patrol.

Kpagih stressed that the border closure is contrary to the ECOWAS trade law and could hurt Nigeria in AfCFTA, suggesting that there should be an urgent reopening of the closure, which has outlived its usefulness.