Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has pledged to reopen Nigeria’s land borders if elected president in the 2027 general election.

Atiku said prolonged border restrictions had weakened legitimate transborder commerce, driven many young entrepreneurs out of business and worsened unemployment, with wider implications for security and economic development.

He made the commitment while addressing supporters in a video shared online by ADC chieftain, Dele Momodu, on Friday.

Atiku said communities in northern Nigeria had traditionally relied on cross-border trade with neighbouring Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin Republic, stressing that such activities constituted legitimate businesses.

“The Northern states are 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,” he said.

The former vice president said the restrictions had particularly affected young Nigerians who had invested significant capital in businesses and employed other people.

“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.

Atiku said he would reverse the policy if elected.

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

Atiku Advocates Better Southern Ports

The ADC presidential candidate also called for the development of port infrastructure in southern Nigeria, saying improved facilities would provide a more efficient route for transporting imported goods to the northern part of the country.

He recalled engaging shipping and ship development companies in Europe during the last campaign over plans to develop ports in the South-East and South-South.

“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,” Atiku said.

He argued that better-developed ports in the southern region would reduce the time and cost of transporting goods to the North-East.

Using Yola, Adamawa State, as an example, Atiku said moving containers from Lagos was unnecessarily difficult and time-consuming because of the long distance and poor road infrastructure.

“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,” he said.