Industrialists on Wednesday lauded the federal government’s decision to reopen the nation’s land borders, which had been closed in 2019 to curb smuggling of goods and weapons.
The industrialists reacted to the government’s announcement of the immediate reopening of four of the land borders in separate statements to newsmen in Lagos.
The land borders approved by President Muhammadu Buhari for immediate reopening are; Seme border in the Southwest, Ilela border in the Northwest, Maigatari border in the North-West and North-Central, and Mfun border in the South-South.
This is according to the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, after the week’s virtual Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting on Wednesday.
“These four land borders will be opened immediately, while the remaining land borders are directed to be reopened on or before Dec. 31,’’ she said.
Ahmed said that President Buhari also directed that while the borders were being reopened, the ban on the importation of rice, poultry and other products still subsisted and would be implemented by the border patrol team.
Dr Muda Yusuf, Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), in reaction, said the reopening was in consonance with the recently ratified Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Yusuf said that the development was beneficial to the economy as many businesses, particularly the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) that depended on cross border trade, would be availed a wider reach, internationally.
“It is a welcome development and will be beneficial to the economy.
“Many small businesses depend on cross border trade for a living and many manufacturers also leverage the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) to boost their business.
“Many also source their raw materials from countries in the sub region, so again, we welcome the development,” he said.
The LCCI’s DG, however, stressed the need to strengthen the border policing and management mechanisms to avoid a relapse into the conditions that led to the closure in the first place.
“The biggest challenge with the border management is an institutional issue.
“We need to demand accountability from the institutions that have the responsibility for border policing and management,” he said.
Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadir, Director-General, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), also welcomed the government decision.
He pushed for necessary frameworks to monitor the borders effectively to make Nigeria products competitive locally and internationally.
“Going forward, government should establish joint border patrol with neighboring countries involving police, customs, immigration, navy and state security services of the countries.
“Government must also provide necessary infrastructural facilities like reliable power supply, good road/rail transportation network etc to reduce production cost.
“Citizens must also be sensitised to patronise and consume locally produced goods, imbibe the benefit of consuming local goods and government should set a good example by patronising local products in all government purchases,” he said.
Chief Ene Dafinone, National President, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Export Promotion Group (MANEG) said exporters whose goods were trapped at the borders would be relieved to be able to complete their contractual obligations.
On his part, Mr Saviour Iche, National President, Association of Micro Entrepreneurs of Nigeria (AMEN) said that the development was welcome, though there had been setbacks.
NAN quoted him as saying that neighboring countries had duplicated Nigerian manufactured goods to attend to the demands of customers following the closure of the borders.
