Sanctions from West Africa prevent food and relief from getting to Niger – Reuters

Cargo is accumulating at the border with Benin, according to the news source.

Due to border bans and sanctions placed on the new military government in Niamey, thousands of trucks carrying food destined for Niger have been stalled at the Malanville crossing in northern Benin for weeks, according to a report from Reuters on Thursday.

One of the busiest in West Africa, the Malanville checkpoint in Benin sees a lot of traffic, including supplies for humanitarian aid travelling into neighbouring Niger.

According to reports, the crossing’s traffic is completely stopped, and a queue of laden vehicles can be seen extending 25 kilometres “from the muddy shores of the Niger River that marks the frontier,” according to Reuters. According to reports, some small traders cross the river in wooden boats to smuggle items into the nation while dodging border patrol agents.

The driver from Niger told the agency, “We don’t know if we’ve been taken hostage or what,” adding that he had spent more than 20 days stuck at the border with his load of sugar and oil. He said, “There is no water, food, or a place to sleep.”

To compel the July 26 coup organisers to return ousted president Mohamed Bazoum, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) imposed financial transaction restrictions and barred access into Niger from its member states.

In Niger, where it claimed at least 3.3 million people were already “acutely food-insecure” prior to the coup, the embargo was “greatly affecting the supply of vital foods and medical supplies into Niger,” the World Food Programme (WFP) said last week.

Western Africa’s interim regional director for the UN food agency, Margot van der Velden, has pleaded with “all parties to facilitate humanitarian exemptions, enabling immediate access to people in need of critical food and basic necessities.”

According to Djaounsede Madjiangar, the WFP’s regional spokesperson for West Africa, around 6,000 tonnes of supplies from the organisation, including grains, cooking oil, and food for malnourished children, are stranded outside of Niger.

Businesses in Nigeria, the nation’s southern neighbour, have voiced concern about how the sanctions may affect cross-border trade. The Associated Press was informed by some locals that business owners have increased prices as a result of the border shutdown.