Nigeria has decided to meet with Niger and Benin Republic over the closure of border by the federal government. The meeting was held on Thursday, November 14, after many reactions and pleas from neighbouring countries.
The federal government committee had met fortnight ago setting conditions for reopening of the country’s borders for goods importation from neighbouring countries.
Nigeria also insisted that neighbouring countries must respect the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) rules of origin if they must bring goods into the country.
Earlier, The Herald reported that Femi Falana, human rights lawyer, urged the federal government to reopen the land boarder because it might hinder exportation of Nigerian locally made good to the neighboring countries.
Falana explained that if the disclosure of the land boarder lingers, the countries may also go further by closing down Nigerian banks and other Nigerian businesses operating in their countries.
The lawyer made this known on Thursday, October 24, at the annual conference of the ECOWAS Court of Justice in Accra, Ghana, on Thursday, while delivering his speech on “Rule of Law, Good Governance and Economic Development.”
He added that instead of the government closing the borders, it should dialogue with Nigeria’s neighbouring countries to fight smuggling and other activities that necessitated the closure.