₦airaland Forum

The military-led governments of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have announced a 0.5% import levy on goods entering their countries from Nigeria and other ECOWAS member states.

According to an official statement from the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS), the tax is aimed at funding the activities of their new regional bloc, following their exit from ECOWAS.

“This levy will apply to all imported goods except humanitarian aid and will serve to finance the activities of our union,” the statement noted.

Growing Divide Between the Sahel and ECOWAS

For decades, ECOWAS facilitated free trade among West African nations, but this latest move marks a widening rift between the three Sahelian nations and economic powerhouses like Nigeria and Ghana.

Originally established as a security alliance, the ASS bloc has expanded into a political and economic entity, unveiling plans for military and financial cooperation, including a common biometric passport.

ECOWAS-Sahel Fallout and Rising Tensions

The juntas in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger seized power in separate 2023 coups, citing insecurity and Islamist insurgencies as reasons for their actions. Their subsequent withdrawal from ECOWAS was a protest against the regional bloc’s perceived failure to support their security challenges.

In response, ECOWAS imposed sanctions to pressure the three nations into returning to democratic governance, but the Sahel leaders have remained defiant.

Nigeria and Ghana’s Diplomatic Efforts Hit a Deadlock

Diplomatic efforts led by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu to reintegrate the Sahel nations have so far failed. Last week, Ghana’s President John Mahama informed Tinubu in Abuja that reconciliation talks had yielded no progress.

With the new 0.5% import levy in effect, trade relations between the Sahel states and ECOWAS nations could be significantly impacted, escalating tensions and potentially reshaping economic alliances in West Africa.

Source: The Bureau Newspaper

President Tinubu's push for unity in ECOWAS is key to regional stability! ✊🌍

How the hunter have become the hunted. ECOWAS must now proof they are not toothless bulldog that barks without bite. Now that all diplomatic solutions have been exhausted, ECOWAS must now show that ASS stands to loose more in this their shenanigans..

Tinubu has destroyed Ecowas.

When you impose import levies on products you don't produce locally, you are simply increasing the prices of these items and taking money out of their pockets

This is a security levy imposed on their citizens. So they want to form a notary union and they are making their citizens okay for it.

fuckingAyaya:
Tinubu has destroyed Ecowas.

He was the one who took over governments using the military right?

This one wey dey beg for help still dey impose levy...
Mtchewwwwwwwwww
Who dey advise all this countries sef

0.5 is like adding nothing Na. Give them Donald Trump style.

Nah them e go pain pass all ECOWAS state can do away with all these desert
1 Burkinabes can't survive without Ivory-Coast economy
2 Nigerians can't exchange their commodities for cash without trading with Nigerians else their farm produce will rotten and can't even survive without some of our imported products. From cement, sugar, fertilizers, petroleum products up to even electricity.
3 Mali is internally fractured and its northern territory is almost going down with terrorists, and can't defend the territory without manpower from Senegal. And Mali can't trade its minerals without Nigeria and Senegal. The truth is these 3 countries can't survive without ECOWAS members while some ECOWAS state like Nigeria, Benin, Ghana , Ivory-Coast and Senegal can survive within themselves

...but Nigeria is Giant of Africa

Small yansh dey shake

bassdow:
...but Nigeria is Giant of Africa

Nigeria how far ? ? ?

And they're still begging us for fuel ooo... Especially that Niger Republic parasite government 🪱 🪱

Buhari just wasted our money in that country, free SUVs, free donations, free roads... All was taken over by the military government! 😂

Those countries are heavily reliant on experts from countries in ECOWAS and hitting them with 0.5% levy means the people importing to those countries would have to Jack up their prices to maintain equilibrium.

The final consumers are the ones that will have to pay for it. And the end, marketers will not lose a penny

Were they not the ones begging for fuel some days ago.
Impose levy your people go suffer am

SoftSport:
President Tinubu's push for unity in ECOWAS is key to regional stability! ✊🌍

Thank you ChatGPT

A litany of own goals by emilokan:

Subsidy removal
Floating of the Naira
Sanction on Niger government leading to her pullout of Ecowas
Suspension of a fully elected democratic state government and replacement by a junta (administrator,no different to the could in Nigeria, Mali and Burkina Faso)
The list goes on.........

santaclaws:
And they're still begging us for fuel ooo... These Niger Republic parasite government 🪱 🪱

They probably wants to favor local production, just like USA president

Mynd44:
He was the one who took over governments using the military right?

His myopic handling of the impasse messed up the situation....he even wanted to use boots on a sovereign country just to intimidate them...not everywhere is Lagos or SW...or Nigeria even

Mynd44:
When you impose import levies on products you don't produce locally, you are simply increasing the prices of these items and taking money out of their pockets

This is a security levy imposed on their citizens. So they want to form a notary union and they are making their citizens okay for it.

Not necessarily. Producers might also be forced to take a profit cut to remain competitive. There is a reason why most countries who export to the U.S are very upset at Trumps sanctions. If it was actually a tax on Americans, why would they care?

The 0.5% by these states is more of a token though - they are just looking to send a message. Their economies are small and should benefit more if the take advantage of trade within the block.

Good

No wahala, Nigeria Should also impose serious levies on the PMS it sells to Niger...
However, I see the ASS countries growing faster economically than the western handicapped ones such as Nigeria.

Good one Nigeria must suffer for trying to bully Russia ally. I love this move let's see what Nigeria and Ecahausa will do

Whynotthetruth:
His myopic handling of the impasse messed up the situation....he even wanted to use boots on a sovereign country just to intimidate them...not everywhere is Lagos or SW...or Nigeria even

You are a big fool.
Go and ask your father if you have any about Nigeria's interventions in Sierra Leone, Liberia, even Ivory Coast and Gambia.
Go and ask about what Obasanjo did in Sao Tome and Principe.

You dumb cowards from the SE who have given your lives to slavery just come online to talk trash.

Air Peace has more aircraft than the entire Military Airforce of some of these coup countries you Ibo fools support foolishly.

Small 3 ants dealing with several big but weak nations brutally, yet they are clueless and begging the ants endlessly.

Infact, Sahel should do more than that for sleeping giant and his weak lieutenants.

Mynd44:
When you impose import levies on products you don't produce locally, you are simply increasing the prices of these items and taking money out of their pockets

This is a security levy imposed on their citizens. So they want to form a notary union and they are making their citizens okay for it.

This is nothing,.compared to the subsidy removal and floating of the naira. These two banes have sent many Nigerians into the dungeon of no return. The sahel nations' currencies, as worthless as they used to be, have since overtaken the naira and left it far behind.

Nigeria recently bailed one of them with 300 truck loads of PMS!

Allow them, make everybody dey him dey.

Body go tell them.

I thought the werey government wan join AES 😂

Whynotthetruth:
His myopic handling of the impasse messed up the situation....he even wanted to use boots on a sovereign country just to intimidate them...not everywhere is Lagos or SW...or Nigeria even

Your type have been clapping and dancing azonto to the US using boots on sovereign countries

Your skewed thoughts will only give you heavy heart, chest pain and migraine and nobody is sharing it with you.

ECOWAS will soon start begging them instead of having a spine for once.

ECOWAS will probably relax all restrictions on imports from these landlocked countries to gain their useless goodwill.
Not even the US commands such fear among its neighbors.

What a shame.

Lol who will start paying the fees...


Is jus like when Nigeria ban Foreign rice guess which Rice people are still going for and who's paying for the high rate I guess is the Govt.....

Another caucus formed