Around the port of Abidjan, the edges of the roads serve as makeshift parking lots for transport trucks.

Since the decision taken by ECOWAS, Sunday January 9, to close the borders of Mali, many trucks bound for this landlocked Sahelian country have been stopped.

In the maze of the district bordering the port, the Malian drivers wait in the dusty alleys, seated in the small canteens which line the road, seated on a bench, or asleep in a harnessed hammock directly under their truck.

The parking lot for Malian heavy goods vehicles has about thirty trucks waiting to know their fate. Under a blazing sun, frustration can be read on the faces of their drivers who are chatting in the shade of a wall. One of them, Kone Camara, has been living on his own financial reserves for several days, waiting to find out what will happen to his merchandise. "I loaded rice and I'm still stopped, he said, I don't understand what's wrong." Several drivers transporting foodstuffs reported these blockages to the France 24 team. The ECOWAS countries had however specified that the closing of the borders - one of the sanctions decided against Mali - would not basic necessities. 

A Malian driver answers questions from France 24 on the port of Abidjan, in January 2022 © France 24

The boredom and worry that dominate

And the Malians are not the only ones concerned.

Tala Sene, a young Ivorian, earns his bread by loading trucks bound for Mali.

Usually, the trucks to load are legion, but these days, it is above all boredom and worry that dominate: "These last days we have not earned anything, impossible to get our usual salary" he sighs. .

Among traders, the consequences are also felt.

In the commune of Adjamé, the commercial hub of Abidjan and the heart of the Malian community in the capital, many Malian traders have no supply problems because they import their products from China or Dubai.

But with the closing of the borders, it is a wholesale clientele that is disappearing: “Most wholesalers are in Mali.

But now everything is at a standstill" deplores Mamadou, manager of a family store selling fabrics, interviewed by France 24. He already sees the concrete consequences of the ECOWAS sanctions: "We are now forced to sell retail, something we don't usually do."

A shop in the Adjame district of Abidjan, January 2022 © France 24

Abidjan, first port for Mali

The High Council of Malians in Côte d'Ivoire estimates the number of Malians residing in Côte d'Ivoire at more than 3 million.

The coastal country would therefore be the first land of welcome for this diaspora in the world.

"The Malian diaspora produces 150 billion CFA francs per year (about 23 million euros, editor's note)", specifies its president, Mahamadou Diwara, who is worried about sanctions penalizing the Malian diaspora more than the government in Bamako. And he adds: "If Côte d'Ivoire loses this activity, it will also lose a lot of money.

So it's not in anyone's interest."

With the closure of the borders, Mali no longer has any maritime outlets.

In addition to Côte d'Ivoire and Mauritania, Senegal no longer allows access to the sea. Representatives of a diaspora largely made up of traders see the impasse looming.

"What are we going to do? The port of Abidjan is Mali's leading port," asks Mahamadou Diawara, himself a trader, who is calling on West African leaders to return to the negotiating table.

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