President Bola Tinubu has issued a directive to immediately reopen Nigeria’s land and air borders with the Republic of Benin and lift other sanctions against the country.
According to a statement by presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale, the decision follows the resolutions made by the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government during its extraordinary summit on February 24, 2024, in Abuja.
“The ECOWAS leaders had agreed to lift economic sanctions against the Republic of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Guinea,” the statement highlighted.
In line with this directive, President Tinubu instructed the lifting of sanctions imposed on the Republic of Niger, including the closure of land and air borders between Nigeria and Niger. Additionally, the ECOWAS no-fly zone on commercial flights to and from Niger Republic has been lifted.
Moreover, all commercial and financial transactions between Nigeria and Niger, including utility services and electricity, will resume, as well as the freezing of assets of the Republic of Niger in ECOWAS Central Banks and commercial banks.
Furthermore, the suspension of Niger from financial assistance and transactions with financial institutions like EBID and BOAD has been lifted.
The statement also mentioned the lifting of travel bans on government officials and their families with immediate effect.
President Tinubu has also approved the lifting of financial and economic sanctions against the Republic of Guinea.
