Home

SA has plans to speed up processes at border posts

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says his department’s long term plan to redesign and develop the country’s six busiest land ports as one-stop border posts, is well under way. The plans include implementing the Border Management Authority legislation, with the aim of strengthening and simplifying operations at the country’s busiest borders.

This emerged during the minister’s oversight visit to the Kopfontein border between South Africa and Botswana.

The Kopfontein border lies 90km outside Zeerust in the North West. It is one of the major ports of entry between South Africa and Botswana, and facilitates trade between SADC countries.

Motorists often queue here for hours, waiting to cross. Truck drivers sometimes wait as long as a week due to long processes.

Some hope the one-stop border post will improve things.

“This is going to help us as the truck drivers, it will help us to be very fast; we won’t have a delay in the lines. Now you see there is a long line this side, so I think with one-stop border we are going to have will make things very fast.”

Dr Motsoaledi says the one-stop border will address these challenges and also improve safety measures.

“The reason why we are doing one border post, remember we are not only doing it here. As South Africa, we have six border posts. It is here in Swartkopfontein, it is in Outshook, it is in Lebombo with Mozambique and in Maseru with Lesotho. The reason why we are doing so is to stop what you are talking about because the border post will be modernised. It will reduce fraud, smuggling and all the bad things that are happening.”

The Botswana government says the one-stop border post will bring economic benefits for both countries. Minister of Nationality, Immigration and Gender Affairs, Anna Mokgethi, says issues to speed up efficiency improve the economy.

“It is definitely going to be economically viable for both countries because we are talking about one stop. There is nothing that can improve the economy such as issues to speed up efficiency. Not only that, we are anticipating having entrepreneurship around this area, so in that sense, we are definitely going to be providing opportunities.”

The time frames for the expected project have not yet been set.

Author

MOST READ