Cross-border Trade: The women of Idiroko

As the first rays of daybreak stretch across the dusty streets of Idiroko, Modinat Bakare arranged vibrant Ankara fabrics outside her shop in Tunbé market. At 65, her frail hands moved with practiced mastery, each fold told a story of decades spent in this trade. The border town always has an early wake, busy roads, […]

As the first rays of daybreak stretch across the dusty streets of Idiroko, Modinat Bakare arranged vibrant Ankara fabrics outside her shop in Tunbé market. At 65, her frail hands moved with practiced mastery, each fold told a story of decades spent in this trade.

The border town always has an early wake, busy roads, filled with motorcycles dodging between buyers and sellers, carrying goods to destinations near and far and the distant call of traders echoing through the air.

Speaking with Weekend Trust, Bakare noted that she “started as nothing but a small beans seller,” with a proud smile that wrinkles the corners of her eyes. “Now people know my name across the border,” she added.

This border town in Ogun State represents more than just a geographical boundary between Nigeria and Benin Republic. For generations, it has presented women in this community the opportunity to master cross border trade, building financial independence   and contributing to economic growth.

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The true story of Idiroko’s economic engine isn’t found in policy documents or trade statistics, but in the lived experiences of women traders who form the backbone of cross-border commerce.

In the eastern corner of Tunbé market, Muinah Adeosun prepares her herbal mixtures under a faded umbrella. Adeosun, not sure of her exact age, asserts that she is in her 60s. This widow has spent decades selling agbo, traditional herbal remedies, to drivers and travellers crossing the border.

“My customers are mostly drivers who travel long distances crossing the border,” she explains, stirring a dark concoction in a clay pot. The aromatic steam rises, carrying scents of bitter herbs and roots believed to provide strength and alertness for long journeys.

After losing her husband over a decade ago, her herbal knowledge became the sole means of supporting her children and now her grandchildren. She narrated that the border closure in 2019 by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration nearly destroyed everything she built.

“When the borders closed, the drivers stopped coming,” she said, “but we women of Tunbé held each other up.”

This concept of mutual support emerges repeatedly in conversations with Idiroko’s female traders. They describe an informal safety net built on trust and collective survival, through a contributory saving scheme known locally as ajo or esusu. These women pool resources to provide emergency capital. When one trader faces a crisis, others extend credit or temporarily absorb children’s expenses.

“We contribute funds to support the businesses of women going through financial crises,” Adeosun explained. “That is how I have been managing myself, my children and grandchildren.”

This system proved crucial during the border closure, when many traders faced simultaneous hardship. With formal banking largely inaccessible to small-scale border traders, these women-led financial systems represent indigenous solutions to economic vulnerability.

Not far from Adeosun’s stand, Mufeedah Taofeek arranges bundles of green waterleaf on a wooden table. At first glance, her business seems little, with small bundles selling for just a few hundred nairas. Yet this mother of six relies entirely on of sales.

“I used to realize a lot of profit before,” she says, adjusting her hijab to properly cover the side of her face. “But now, the gain in a N1000 basket of waterleaf is not up to N200.”

Yet despite these hardship, Taofeek continues to show up daily, arranging her waterleaf with care, participating in the ajo with whatever she can spare, and maintaining dignity amid scarcity. Her persistence represents the quiet heroism replicated across Tunbé market women who refuse to surrender to circumstances.

 

The Igolo women in money exchange

Women’s commitment to trade across borders extends to Igolo. A Beninese town 132.7 kilometers from Idiroko community.

Here, in a sector typically dominated by men across West Africa, these women have carved out unique financial power as operators of bureau de change businesses. These “money women” facilitate the currency transactions that oil the wheels of cross-border trade.

Ganiyat Adegbola stands under a large umbrella with “BUREAU DE CHANGE” painted in bright letters across its canopy. Stacks of CFA francs and Nigerian naira rest in organised piles on a table positioned in front of her. At 50, her reputation stretches from this border point to Cotonou, where she maintains trading relationships built over 24 years.

Speaking with our correspondent, Adegbola recounted how women in Igolo town “are the primary players in the money exchange business,” counting notes as she spoke. “It comes from our lineage, and all members of the family prioritize keeping the legacy.”

She confessed that her business faces unique challenges, which include heavy regulations, limiting cash movement across borders and the gender dynamics of the business which she is determined to conquer.

“The border officers enforce regulations, stating that amounts exceeding one million naira cannot be taken into Benin Republic,” she explains. “This often leaves us with insufficient funds for business transactions.

“Since the majority of us are women, we often encounter difficulties when dealing with a large number of people daily, particularly men. “They sometimes try to assert their dominance to intimidate us,” she said.

Yet Adegbola and her female colleagues have developed strategies to maintain their economic position, forming associations that have provided cover for them.

 

Border reopening: the road to recovery

After 16 months of border closure, Nigeria reopened its borders in December 2020.

The government had cited achievements within the 16 months of closure to include reduced rice smuggling and increased customs revenue. But for the Idiroko’s trading community, the aftermath resembles a slow economic pick-up.

“Business used to be good,” reflected Adegbola, looking across to the Nigerian side. “Shops stayed open until late. But now, even as we try to recover, many have lost their customers and are struggling financially. Unlike before, everyone closes early due to a lack of customers.”

As evening approached in Tunbé market, Modinat Bakare carefully folded her remaining fabrics, storing them in large plastic containers until the next day. With optimism, she is sure of a better day.

“It would be difficult to recover our losses at once, but we are hopeful to go back to when we once enjoyed our businesses,” she said.

This determined hope resonates throughout Idiroko and across to Igolo, where similar scenes unfold as the day’s trading concludes.

For Mary Alao, whose rice business continues to struggle, adaptation means diversification. She now supplements her income by selling locally produced palm oil.

“The little profit I make, and even my initial investment, goes towards my children’s school fees,” she explains, “we cannot stop pushing forward.”

At dusk, Idiroko is illuminated by scattered generator powered lights and motorcycle headlamps, the border doesn’t go to sleep, as night time brings its own economy with different trade activities. By morning, the cycle begins again.

 

Opportunities in the AfCFTA

The ECOWAS Protocol on free movement of persons, established in May 1979, which allowed citizens to move, reside and conduct business across member states without restriction made commerce for the women in Idiroko seemingly easy.

However, experts spoke of the hope that lies in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which Nigeria ratified in 2020. This agreement aimed to create the largest free trade area, connecting 1.3 billion people across 54 countries with a combined GDP of 3.4 trillion dollars.

Mr. Olusegun Olutayo of Nigeria’s AfCFTA Coordination Office outlined initiatives designed to strengthen economic activities along the borders, including improving customs cooperation, automating operations, and simplifying procedures.

“We’re working to create a single-window system that enhances compliance and minimizes clearance times,” Olutayo explains. “Efforts also include promoting border agency cooperation, eliminating non-tariff barriers, and developing trade-related infrastructure like warehouses, cold storage and access roads.”

However, the gap between policy ambitions and ground-level implementation remains substantial. For women like Taofeek, Adeosun and Bakare, AfCFTA remains an abstract concept with little immediate impact on their daily struggle for survival.