The 2019 - 2020 Nigerian Border Closure and Its Implications on West African Regional Integration

Abstract

On 20th August, 2019, the administration of Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, closed the state's land borders with Chad, Benin, Cameroon, and Niger to prevent the illegal movement of goods in order to safeguard local industries and boost domestic production. The closure of the border to its neighbouring countries raised a lot of eyebrows by various scholars, prompted considerable criticism from other African states and raised doubts about the country's commitment to economic integration within the West African sub-region. The viability of every integration process subsists on the willing commitment of member states to abide by the dictates of their charter. For instance, the charter of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) is driven by its free movement protocols, which is organised under the broader ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS). The study investigated the implications Nigeria’s border closure had on regional integration, particularly how it affected the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Adopting a qualitative approach, the study found that progress toward achieving the goals of regional and intra continental trade agreements was slowed due to the closure of Nigeria’s border. The closure of Nigeria's border put the free trade agreement of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the new African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) in jeopardy. The study concluded that while Nigeria has shown commitment to ECOWAS integration, closing its borders was not the best course of action and that there were more viable ways of addressing its concerns. The study recommended that to combat the widespread breakdown of border controls, countries should rely on modern technology by installing electronic surveillance equipment at their many checkpoints.