Shoppers in Niger’s coup-hit capital Niamey are facing skyrocketing prices for basic foods as a result of trade sanctions imposed by neighboring West African countries after the military takeover. Ibou Kane, a customer at one rain-drenched market, noted that the price of a sack of rice has risen by more than a third to around 15,000 CFA francs ($25) since the coup prompted the ECOWAS economic and political bloc to close borders and sever commercial ties. “Frankly, I’ve felt it in my pocket. And right now … we’re all stocking up,” Kane said.
Coup leader Abdourahamane Tiani, who ousted President Mohamed Bazoum, acknowledged that foreign pressure would make the coming weeks and months difficult for all Nigeriens and called for unity.
At the Yantala market, there was no obvious panic-buying, but both vendors and shoppers were feeling the financial strain. Cooking oil prices have also increased, with a can now costing 33,000 CFA, up from 22,000 just a few days prior.
Boubacar Salou, a merchant selling grains, expressed support for the junta’s rallying call. “We mustn’t create panic now. Because this affects us all … It’s up to us to show that we are Nigeriens and that we must help those around us, and above all help the new government,” he said.
The closure of borders by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) poses a particularly grave threat to Niger, which is landlocked and already plagued by poverty. Even before the coup, around 3.3 million of Niger’s 26 million people were facing acute food shortages in the midst of a hunger crisis affecting parts of the region.
The Paris-based International Federation for Human Rights and the Nigerien Association for the Defense of Human Rights have urged ECOWAS to reconsider the trade sanctions in order to avoid exacerbating civilian hardships. “We are deeply concerned about the consequences of these sanctions, especially their impacts on the supply of essential food products, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, petroleum products, and electricity,” stated Sita Adamou, head of the Niger group. “These measures have already begun to affect the Nigerien population, who are regularly facing food and health difficulties.”
Former President Mohamed Bazoum, currently detained in the presidential palace, argued in an opinion article for The Washington Post that the coup would lead to chaos by encouraging Islamist insurgents and straining the local economy. “These measures (sanctions) are already demonstrating what a future would look like under an autocratic junta with no vision or reliable allies,” he wrote. “The price of rice rose by 40 percent between Sunday and Tuesday, and some neighborhoods have begun to report shortages of goods and electricity.”
Apart from the trade sanctions, Niger is also grappling with aid cuts from various Western nations, which account for 40% of the country’s budget. Additionally, the regional central bank canceled a planned 30 billion CFA bond issuance earlier this week.
($1 = 597 CFA francs)
(Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Nellie Peyton and Andrew Cawthorne)
Credit: The Star : News Feed
