Trade Between Chad and Cameroon Falls After Deby’s Death 

KOUSSERI, CAMEROON    - Trade between Cameroon and its landlocked neighbor Chad has come to a virtual standstill, with Chad refusing entry to hundreds of trucks carrying essential supplies for its capital.  Chadian military authorities sealed the border last week after the death of longtime president Idriss Deby amid threats from armed rebels. 

Hundreds of trucks with goods meant for Chad’s capital, N'Djamena, are sitting idle in Kousseri, a town on Cameroon’s northern border with Chad.  Another long line of trucks sits and waits on Chadian side of the border.   Only a few vehicles said to be transporting humanitarian aid and hospital equipment are being given access to N’djamena by Chad’s border security men.    Cameroon’s Ministry of Transport says at least 700 trucks bound for Chad’s capital have been asked to delay their trips.  Nana Seini transports rice from Cameroon’s coastal city of Douala to N'Djamena. He says movement between Kousseri and N'djamena has been halted for about a week now.