The reopening of land borders comes into effect this Thursday morning. They had been closed since March 22, 2020 to combat the spread of Covid-19.
With our correspondent in Abidjan, Bineta Diagne
The closure of the land borders in force for almost three years has now been lifted, due to “ the favorable health and economic development “, indicates the Council of Ministers. Already last month, the National Security Council announced a gradual lifting of these preventive measures.
This decision aims to put an end to clandestine crossings and redirect travelers to official crossings. Because until then, people were using unsupervised tracks, according to several residents of Ouangolodougou, a town near the border with Burkina Faso. ” This should allow these flows of people to be redirected to official crossings, in order to ensure better control of migratory flows. “Explains Amadou Coulibaly, the minister spokesperson for the government. The last National Security Council noted a “ recent influx of 8,700 Burkinabè refugees fleeing violence in their country. The Ivorian authorities want to identify them and set up reception sites.
The reopening of land borders is also a relief for carriers whose activities have drastically reduced in recent years. Ucrao, the Union of West African Truck Drivers (Ucrao) is thus banking on a gradual resumption of road traffic for nearly 300 transport companies. ” We must replenish the workforce in the bus stations, because the drivers had found themselves unemployed “, explains Daouda Bamba, the secretary general of this organization. This manager is counting on a smooth return to work for drivers and station assessors, i.e. nearly 24,000 people.