Cameroonian authorities have rebuilt a bridge destroyed by Boko Haram militants in 2015 in an effort to damage trade with Nigeria and Chad.
The Mayo Limani Bridge that links northern Cameroon and southeastern Nigeria was blown by the terrorists in the heat of their insurgency war but in a statement on Monday, the Cameroonian government said it had deployed additional troops to protect construction workers repairing other damage caused by the militants, who are still actively launching attacks in the border area.
The government said it spent an estimated $3 million to rebuild the span that same year, but Boko Haram militants chased construction workers away, forcing officials to stop pedestrians from crossing the bridge which is also a gateway to Nigeria for goods from Chad.
According to the ruler of Limani, Bichair Hachimi, civilians, especially merchants, were celebrating the full reopening this Monday of the 120-meter-long bridge that links Amchide in Cameroon and Limani in Nigeria.
Hachimi said people are grateful because economic activity will receive a boost on both sides of the border after eight years of almost no activity.
Bichair who spoke during a meeting in Yaounde to evaluate the Cameroonian government-sponsored projects on the northern border with Chad and Nigeria that experience Boko Haram attacks said Limani is a business hub in Nigeria’s Borno state.
