They watch the days go by, trying to kill time. Between two trucks, drivers keep busy preparing tea. Behind them, others hang out their laundry or rest under a makeshift tent set up at the front of their semi-trailer stopped in the suburbs of the Beninese town of Kandi, about a hundred kilometers from the river which marks the border with Niger.

Since the coup against President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26, the airspace has been closed by the Nigerien junta on August 6, only to reopen to commercial flights on September 4. The blockade decided by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to punish the putschists is however still in force. Consequence: more than a thousand trucks are stuck in the area. On the Benin side, the line of stationary vehicles stretches nearly 25 kilometers from the Malanville border post.

According to the World Food Program (WFP), some 6,000 tons of goods supplied by the United Nations agency are held up at Niger’s borders. “We could end up with 10 million people unable to feed themselves,” warns Djaounsede Madjiangar, the organization’s spokesperson. Humanitarian needs are growing and time is running out. »

Trucks parked at the border between Benin and Niger carry cereals, oil, specific food for malnourished children and medicines. These deliveries are intended to ease the food crisis hitting the Sahelian country, as 250,000 people have been pushed from their homes by the Islamist insurgency.

Cereal prices are soaring

Taking the pretext of the “current security situation”, while several jihadist attacks have been recorded since the putsch, the ruling junta in Niamey announced Thursday, August 31 the suspension of all activities of international organizations, NGOs and UN agencies, in the military “areas of operations”, but without specifying the regions concerned.

The lack of foodstuffs inside the country is causing prices to soar in Niger. Since the announcement of the ECOWAS sanctions, rice has increased by 21% and that of sorghum by 14%, according to the WFP. Before the putsch, nearly 3 million people were already struggling to afford one meal a day. Sanctions are not limited to the supply of food. Neighboring Nigeria has cut its electricity supply, which in particular complicates care in hospitals, said General Abdourahamane Tiani, the head of the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Fatherland (CNSP).

Around the border, the living conditions of road hauliers are deteriorating a little more every day. “I’ve been stuck in Malanville since July 26,” complains Adamou Sifou Amadou, a Nigerian driver contacted by phone. It is constantly raining and there is nothing left to eat because the street vendors who supplied us at the beginning have disappeared. Many drivers have bouts of malaria and they don’t have medication. We are exhausted. »

The president of the drivers of Borgou and Alibori, two departments in northern Benin, was supposed to deliver 47 tonnes of rice to Zinder, eastern Niger, but his truck has now been stuck 900 kilometers away for more than 40 days from its point of delivery. Under the cover of his vehicle, the food spoils due to humidity. “All opened or damaged bags of rice will be charged,” he laments. Financially, it’s a disaster. »

A “colossal” loss for carriers

“Who will pay? asks Abdulrazak Koffi Bandele, transporter and trade unionist, based in Kandi. The carrier ? The chauffeur ? The owner of the merchandise? The insurance ? We do not know anything. We are already experiencing a colossal loss and we are in great pain. The border must open and the Beninese government must hear us. » According to him, the return of trucks to the port of Cotonou, 730 kilometers away, where activity has been slow since the start of the crisis, would be impossible due to the cost of diesel which would further increase losses. “And where could we park all these vehicles? There is no longer a single free space in the parking lots,” fumes Abdulrazak Koffi Bandele.

Bola Tinubu, president of Nigeria and ECOWAS, suggested on Thursday the possibility, immediately rejected by the regional organization, of a nine-month transition for the Nigerien junta. “The acts of the military are unacceptable,” said the Nigerian head of state. The sooner they make positive adjustments, the sooner we will reverse the sanctions to alleviate the suffering we see. The generals in power in Niamey had mentioned on August 19 a transition of three years maximum.

On several occasions, the West African organization has said it is ready to use force to restore constitutional order. On the border between Benin and Niger, where armed bands from Nigeria in particular are rampant, the consequences of an armed intervention could be serious for road hauliers. “If ECOWAS starts a war, we already know that everything will be destroyed because the populations will kill each other to rush on our loads and loot the goods, worries Abdulazak Koffi Bandele. The whole region could then fall into chaos. »