2027: Atiku Vows to Reopen Land Borders, Develop Southern Ports

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has promised to reopen Nigeria’s land borders if elected president in the 2027 general election.

Atiku, who is the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), said the move would restore cross-border commerce and create more economic opportunities for young Nigerians whose businesses depend on trade with neighbouring countries.

He made the pledge while speaking to supporters in a video circulating online.

The video was shared by prominent ADC chieftain, Dele Momodu, on Friday.

The former vice president argued that prolonged restrictions on land borders had affected legitimate businesses in communities close to Nigeria’s international boundaries.

According to him, many young Nigerians engaged in transborder trade before the restrictions were introduced.

He maintained that such activities should not automatically be treated as illegal because legitimate trade across borders provides income for thousands of families.

“The Northern states is bordering Cameroon, Chad, Niger, 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.

He further linked the decline in cross-border business to unemployment and insecurity.

Atiku said several young entrepreneurs who had built businesses with significant capital were forced to shut down after the borders were restricted.

He said the effect went beyond the traders themselves because many of them had employees who also lost their means of livelihood.

“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.

The ADC candidate then made his position clear on what he would do if elected in 2027.

“So I said I am going to reopen the borders and I will,” he added.

The country shares international borders with Benin Republic, Niger Republic, Chad and Cameroon.

Several communities along those borders have traditionally depended on trade, transportation and other commercial activities involving neighbouring countries.

However, security concerns and smuggling have remained major challenges for successive administrations.

Atiku also spoke about the need to improve Nigeria’s southern ports.

He said the country should develop more ports in the South to create a better balance in the movement of imported goods across the country.

According to him, he had previously engaged international shipping and port development companies on how the ports in the South-South and South-East could be expanded and better utilised.

“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 former vice president said the development of ports in places such as Calabar, Uyo and Port Harcourt could significantly reduce the distance and time required to move cargoes to states in the North-East.

He used the movement of containers to Yola, Adamawa State, as an example.

Atiku said the current arrangement, which makes Lagos a major gateway for imports, creates additional transportation difficulties for businesses taking goods to the northern part of the country.

“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 spreading port activities across different parts of the country would make the movement of goods more efficient and reduce pressure on existing transport corridors.

Politics Nigeria recalls in August 2019, the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari announced the closure of Nigeria’s land borders to several categories of imports.

The policy was introduced as part of efforts to tackle smuggling and protect local production.

The government also argued that the measure would encourage Nigerians to patronise locally produced agricultural goods and reduce the influx of products considered harmful to domestic industries.

The restrictions, however, had major consequences for traders and communities operating around the borders.

In December 2020, the Buhari administration approved the reopening of four land borders, including Seme in Lagos, Illela in Sokoto, Maigatari in Jigawa and Mfun in Cross River.

The border policy has continued to evolve under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

In February 2026, the Federal Government approved the reopening of the Tsamiya border in Kebbi State with Benin Republic for legitimate transit trade.

The Kamba corridor linking Nigeria with Niger Republic was also reopened around the same period.

The Nigeria Customs Service said the Kebbi corridors would operate under strict procedures to prevent the diversion of transit goods into the Nigerian market.

More than 1,600 trucks had reportedly been stranded around the corridor before movement resumed.

Customs officials also carried out compliance inspections after the reopening, stressing that legitimate trade could continue while measures against smuggling and illegal diversion remained in place.