The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to reopen Nigeria’s land borders with neighbouring countries if elected president.
Atiku made the pledge while addressing supporters in a video circulating online and shared by ADC chieftain Dele Momodu on Friday.
He said the closure of the country’s borders had negatively affected transborder trade and contributed to rising unemployment, particularly among young Nigerians.
‘The Northern states border Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and the Benin Republic.
‘And you close all those borders. All our young men who are doing trading between these countries, they carry goods across, they do this and that; all what we call transborder trade is a legitimate business,’ Atiku said.
According to him, many young people who previously operated businesses with millions of naira in capital were forced out of business following the border closures.
‘All the upcoming young men and women who used to have a capital of 10 million, 20 million, and they were employing two, three other people, and then all of them went bankrupt and unemployed. How can there be security?’ he asked.
‘So I said I am going to reopen the borders and I will,’ he added.
Atiku also spoke about the need to improve the movement of goods through ports in southern Nigeria, saying he had previously explored ways to develop the region’s port infrastructure.
‘During the last campaign, I went across to Europe to discuss with shippers and ship development companies how we can together develop South and South-Eastern ports so that there is balance as far as importation of goods and transportation of goods are concerned,’ he said.
The ADC candidate said developing ports in the South would reduce the time and cost involved in transporting goods to the North-East.
He cited the transportation of containers from Lagos to Yola in Adamawa State, where he said he had a factory.
‘So when, if I drop my container in Calabar or in Uyo or in Port Harcourt, it will just take me 24 hours to take the container to Yola.
‘But right now, it takes me not less than two months to take my container from Lagos because you have to cross over from South-West, you go to North-East, and then there is even no road,’ Atiku said.
He said his position reflected concerns about the movement of goods across the country and the need to develop southern ports.
Nigeria’s land borders were closed in August 2019 under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari. The Federal Government at the time said the measure aimed to curb large-scale smuggling of rice, poultry products, petroleum products, and other goods, as well as weapons and drugs, while encouraging local agricultural production.
In December 2020, Buhari ordered the reopening of four border crossings, including the Seme Border in Lagos State, the Illela Border in Sokoto State, the Maigatari Border in Jigawa State and the Mfun Border in Cross River State.
Under President Bola Tinubu, the Federal Government reopened the Tsamiya land border with the Benin Republic in Kebbi State and the Kamba corridor linking Nigeria with the Niger Republic in February 2026.
The Nigeria Customs Service said at the time that the reopening would be accompanied by measures to prevent smuggling and other illegal activities.
While some strategic border posts have since been reopened, some land borders have remained restricted or under tight controls.