This follows a meeting between the Foreign Affairs Ministers of the two countries.
Africa’s most populous country partially closed its borders with Benin in August this year to curb the movement of illicit weapons and other smuggled goods.
However, the move has affected trading in neighbouring countries including Ghana where the Ghana Union of Traders Association has condemned the closure describing it as an outright breach of ECOWAS treaties.
Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Shirley AyorkorBotchwey who spoke after the meeting in Abuja said the border will soon be opened.
“We have had several trucks that have been stuck at the Benin side of the border. They have not been able to cross into Nigeria. But hopefully, this will be a thing of the past. We will find a modality to resolve it so they can pass through and do their business as usual. At the moment, there is no impediment for the Nigerian businesses that export their goods into Ghana and I know this is one thing that is an issue because when our traders see that happening, they are very up in arms and I know that this trip is fruitful because I can see the signs already of what we have agreed.”
The closure of the borders would be in force for twenty-eight (28) days, however, if the issues remained unresolved, there was no guarantee that the borders would be reopened after the twenty-eight (28) days.
The smuggling of goods and sale of substandard products through the eastern corridor is a phenomenon Ghana is battling with thereby having severe consequences on revenue mobilization.
As a result of this development, GUTA has constantly asked authorities to strictly enforce the country’s laws on foreign trade. Read Full Story
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