Most trade between Cameroon and Nigeria takes place along 10 major corridors, both inland and on the coast. These cross-border corridors are linked in with domestic transport networks in each country, often covering long distances. Seven of these corridors are situated in the northern part of the border, two in the West, and the last corridor covers products that are transported by sea. This section describes the major corridors in greater detail, focusing on the transport linkages that are relatively near the border or serve the nearest large commercial center.
Most traffic in the north (Far-North and North Regions) flows along the following three main and some additional minor corridors:
-
Maiduguri – Dikwas – Ngala – Fotokol –Maltam – Kousseri:
This serves primarily as a transshipment route between Chad and northern Nigeria. The section between Maiduguri and the border at Fotokol is paved and in reasonably good condition. That between the border and Maltam is 85 kilometers of unpaved gravel road, which is impassible in the rainy season due to flooding. The 25 km section from Maltam to Kousseri at the Chad border is paved and is used mainly by Chadian traffic.
During the rainy season, trucks have two alternatives. One is to travel over the open ground south of the flooded area. The other is to cross the border at Banki and continue on to Mora in northern Cameroon (see next corridor), where Route N1 is taken north to Maltam and then to Kousseri. Trucks in transit between Chad and Nigeria obtain a visa, which allows them to transit Cameroon without paying customs duties, though informal payments must still be made along the road and at customs posts.
-
Maiduguri – Bama – Banki – Limani – Mora –Maroua:
This is the major cross-border trade route in the Far North Region. The road on the Nigerian side to the customs post at Banki is paved and in good condition. However, that from the Cameroonian customs post at Limani to Mora is in very bad condition. It is deeply rutted and trucks break down on it frequently, hindering passage. Although it is only about 30 kilometers in length, even in the dry season a truck may take a week to complete the passage. In the rainy season, it may at times be impassible but traffic volumes increase by fifty percent nevertheless as traffic from further North diverts to this crossing. Although not in great condition, the Route N1 road from Mora to Maroua is manageable. Other traffic goes to the north towards Kousseri and Chad. This section of Route N1 is quite bad but is passable even in the rainy season.96 Overall travel time from Banki to Maroua has increased significantly from 45 minutes to 2.5 hours over the last few years even for smaller vehicles.
-
Maiduguri – Bama – Banki – Limani – Bogo – Maga:
On the Nigerian side, this route is the same as the one to Maroua. However, the road from Limani to Bogo and Maga in Cameroon is singled out because this is a very important route for the transportation of rice paddy from the SEMRY project to northern Nigeria, where it is parboiled and milled. The road from Maga to Bogo is paved and in good condition, but the route from Bogo to Maroua is unpaved and the condition of this part of the road can be bad in the rainy season. However, since much of the paddy is transported during the dry season, the Bogo-Maroua road is not a major constraint.
-
Maiduguri – Bama – Gwoza – Touron – Mokolo:
Trade along this route is much less than along the Limani – Mora – Maroua route. Nevertheless, it is important because the Mandara Mountain range, in which Mokolo is the regional capital, is a major route for the smuggling of goods. Many of these are transported up the slopes of the mountains by motorcycle or donkey. Key among these goods are motorcycles and motorcycle parts, as well as electronic and other relatively high-value goods. Touron is a very small town that provides easier access to the mountains than some of the steeper areas. Small 5-7 ton trucks may be loaded here with goods coming from Nigeria, in which case they will usually pass through customs in Mokolo. Transportation to either Maroua or the south is easy given an excellent road that connects Mokolo with Highway N1.
Map : Corridors in the North
-
Mubi – Boukoula – Guider:
This is an alternative trade route between those that link Maroua and Garoua with northern Nigeria. Goods passing through Mubi, Nigeria can originate in or flow through either Maiduguri or Yola. After passing across the border at Boukoula, Cameroon, the goods continue in a number of directions. Guider, to the east, is the closest large town. Customs posts are located at the border in Nigeria and on the Cameroonian side at Kozala, Dourneye, Nagadji, and Guider.
-
Jimenta – Demsa – Garoua:
This is the principal route between Yola (Jimenta), Nigeria and Garoua, Cameroon. It is a paved road to the border at Bélel on the Nigerian side. However, the passage there across the river is almost impossible in the rainy season, except by boat. The road from Demsa to the customs post at Gaschiga is unpaved but in fair condition. That from Gashchiga to Garoua is paved and in good condition.
-
Yola – Bardanké -- Garoua via the Benoué River:
An alternative route between Yola and Garoua is via the Benoué River, which passes the frontier near Bardanké, Cameroon. This route, which is only available during the rainy season, has been made increasingly impracticable with construction of dams along the river which has made the water level less predictable, making it difficult for bigger boats to operate.
Trade in Western Cameroon (North-West and South-West Regions) flows along two key corridors, as well as a number of waterways:
-
Enugu – Abakaliki – Abong – Abonshie – Ako – Nkambe – Ndu – Kumbo:
This is an alternative to the road through Ekok during the rainy season. Although longer and unsafe for large trucks, the route is passable and less expensive than the more direct route. Nigerian customs is located at Abong: there are Cameroonian customs posts at Abonshie, Nkambe, and Ndu. After reaching Kumbo, the traffic may go on to Bamenda or continue into the West Region.
-
Enugu – Abakaliki – Ikom – Mfum – Ekok – Mamfé – Bamenda (Kumba):
This 443 km long corridor comprises the Cameroonian Bamenda-Mamfé-Ekok road sections on N 6 (203 km), the bridge over the Munaya River in Cameroon (100 m), the border bridge over the Cross River (230 m), and the Nigerian road sections (240 km) from Mfum to Enugu. Road conditions on the Nigerian side are generally good, while large sections of the road from Ekok to Mamfe and Bamenda on the Cameroonian side are in very bad condition and are virtually impassable during the rainy season. During the rainy season traffic from Nigeria reaches Mamfé directly by boat. Some traffic from Nigeria continues from Mamfé southward towards Kumba, though the road from Mamfé to Kumba is in an extremely bad state. The Nigerian customs post at Mfum technically cannot clear goods, but traders are charged nevertheless. In Cameroon, customs post are located at Ekok, Mamfé, and Bamenda. The AfDB is currently leading a project, which the World Bank is supporting, to improve and rehabilitate the corridor by 2014. Among other things, the project will develop or reconstruct the road and two bridges, carry out periodic maintenance of 192 km of road, remove obstacles to the free flow of traffic by building a joint border post, limiting the number of checkpoints, and controlling axle load, and build the capacity of agencies responsible for monitoring implementation of the project.97 While this project has the potential to radically change the nature of trade relationships between Cameroon and Nigeria, the component on removing obstacles and simplifying procedures at borders seems to be less developed than the physical reconstruction.
Map : Land Corridors in the South
Cameroon and Nigeria are also linked by sea. The most important linkages are Tiko/Limbe – Calabar and Idenau – Oron. Douala is less important because of the high cost of clearing customs there. On the Cameroonian side, Tiko is most important in terms of volume. Trade between Idenau and Oron is highly specialized in Cameroonian exports of eru. Once goods have cleared customs in Limbe, Tiko, or Idenau, most are transported by road to Douala. This sea-road corridor has the advantage that it is relatively fast and secure, and large shipments can be made at one time, e.g., a ship carrying fifteen to twenty 20-ton trucks per trip. Ships often operate twice a week and work on a set schedule.
Share with your friends: |