×
Tour d’ivoire
Tour d’ivoire Par Ahlam NAZIH
Le 24/02/2025

Avec son style disruptif, son cynisme d’Etat pratiqué à l’extrême et son pragmatisme à toute épreuve, Trump II tantôt fascine, tantôt fait peur. Le dirigeant de... + Lire la suite...

Recevoir notre newsletter
User logged in | L'Economiste

Truckers in the Sahel region A shout for help from professionals

Par Akram OUBACHIR | Edition N°:6940 Le 31/01/2025 | Partager
camion_sahel_6937.jpg
“I call on professionals not to take any risks. For their own safety and that of their goods, it’s better to wait and leave with an escort rather than expose yourself to danger”, stressed a professional in the road transport sector

IN the wake of the kidnapping of four Moroccan truck drivers on the border between Burkina Faso and Niger, blamed on a terrorist group, national unions in the transport sector, contacted by L’Economiste, point to the difficulties encountered in the exercise of their profession and propose solutions to improve the sector. On January 18, 2025, four Moroccan drivers aboard three trucks carrying electricity poles bound for Niamey, the capital of Niger, disappeared as they attempted to cross a road known to be dangerous due to the presence of armed groups, without escort. According to our information, other Moroccan drivers had previously been taken hostage by Boko Haram, a Salafist jihadist terrorist group affiliated to the Islamic State, before being released a few days later. Mustapha El Karkouri, General Secretary of the National Road Transport Union ( Syndicat national du transport routier), is calling on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to work with the authorities in the countries truckers pass through to issue information bulletins for truckers, indicating risky routes. 
“ This system of bulletins is already in place in several countries. It will make it possible to inform drivers of the risks involved, and to make them accountable if they fail to follow instructions, without involving the responsibility of other parties in the event of an incident ”, he explained. 
Moroccan drivers connecting the Kingdom with the Sahel region cover an average of over 2,500 kilometers. Their route takes them through countries marked by a strong presence of terrorist groups, notably Burkina Faso, ranked first in the global terrorism index, and Mali, in third place, where the Islamic State organization operates in the Greater Sahara. A few weeks ago, Moroccan truck drivers were attacked by a terrorist group while in Nioro, a town in southern Mali. In the event of a driver’s death, his remains are repatriated to Morocco in a refrigerated truck that returns empty,” says the trade unionist. 
The four truckers who went missing on January 18 had chosen to take the route without an escort, as it was taking too long to set up. “ I call on professionals not to take risks. For their own safety and that of their belongings, it’s better to wait and leave with an escort rather than expose oneself to danger ”, said Mustapha El Karkouri. For him, the disparity in road infrastructure development between Morocco and the Sahelian countries also presents a risk for drivers. Most of the roads in these countries are still made of earth, which puts drivers at greater risk of road accidents. 

Akram OUBACHIR