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Inside Nigeria's open but corrupt, chaotic borders

A trader approaches the closed Niger-Nigeria border in Jibia, 2024. [AFP]

West Africa has pursued one of the world’s most ambitious border liberalisation schemes in the past four decades. The Ecowas Free Movement Protocol, signed in 1979, enables citizens of 16 member states to cross international borders with minimal documentation. The intention was to promote economic integration and prosperity across the region.

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