Nigeria opens land, air borders with Republic of Niger

President Bola Tinubu has issued a directive for the immediate reopening of Nigeria’s land and air borders with the Republic of Niger and the removal of other sanctions imposed on the country.

This directive aligns with the decisions made by the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government during its extraordinary summit held on February 24, 2024, in Abuja.

During the summit, ECOWAS leaders reached a consensus to lift economic sanctions against several nations including the Republic of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea.

President Tinubu’s directive specifically entails the lifting of the following sanctions imposed on the Republic of Niger:

1. The closure of land and air borders between Nigeria and Niger Republic, along with the ECOWAS no-fly zone on all commercial flights to and from Niger Republic.
2. Suspension of all commercial and financial transactions between Nigeria and Niger, including the freeze of service transactions such as utility services and electricity to Niger Republic.
3. Freeze of assets belonging to the Republic of Niger in ECOWAS Central Banks, as well as assets of state enterprises and parastatals in commercial banks.
4. Suspension of Niger from receiving financial assistance and conducting transactions with financial institutions, particularly EBID and BOAD.
5. Lift on travel bans imposed on government officials and their family members.

Furthermore, President Tinubu has authorized the lifting of financial and economic sanctions against the Republic of Guinea.