Nigeria said on Sunday its borders
would remain closed to trade until at least January 31, 2020.
A partial border closure was launched in August to tackle smuggling of rice and other goods. Last month the head of customs confirmed that all trade via land borders was halted indefinitely.
Joseph Attah, spokesman for the Nigerian customs service said the present phase of the closure would end on January 31, 2020, and that would not be the end of the closure.
He was quoted saying, “The operation is in phases, it will continue until the set objective is attained”.
A private memo sent by the customs service comptroller for enforcement, Victor Dimka, to colleagues described the closure operation as an overwhelming success, but said there were some strategic objectives yet to be achieved.
The memo failed to outline which objectives these were.
