The upgrade of the Beitbridge Border Post into a one-stop border post has been welcomed by many Zimbabweans living and working in South Africa, as well as those who regularly visit the country for shopping.
The announcement was made by the Border Management Authority (BMA) on Tuesday, 28 April, in Pretoria. Beitbridge is one of the six busiest land ports of entry to be upgraded into one-stop border posts.
For many years, the border has experienced high volumes of travellers moving in and out of the country. According to the Border Management Authority, outdated infrastructure and fragmented systems are causing delays.
Zimbabweans and other travellers heading north often spend long hours in queues, enduring hot and cold weather.
A traveller who wished to remain anonymous told Limpopo Mirror that in January this year, he arrived at the border at around 05:30 and found long queues.
“I was only served around 11:00 despite the BMA announcing contingency plans to deal with the expected volumes of travellers returning to South Africa,” he said.
The redevelopment of the six land ports aims to introduce modern, fit-for-purpose infrastructure and systems that will enable real-time coordination between border agencies from South Africa and neighbouring states.
Baobab Concession has been appointed as the successful bidder to carry out the construction work in phases over an estimated period of three years.
Some Zimbabweans living and working in South Africa who travelled home for the Easter holidays said the upgrade should include not only infrastructure but also improvements in the conduct of officials working at the border.
“Most of the time, BMA officials spend time talking to each other at the expense of serving travellers. We welcome this development, but senior authorities must ensure officials carry out their work consistently,” said Joseph Maphosa, a Zimbabwean who recently returned from the Easter holiday.
Another Zimbabwean woman, also preferring not to be named, said she often feels anxious about travelling home because of the experience at the border.
“It does not matter whether it is a holiday or not. We always endure long queues and hot weather at the border. We believe the one-stop border post might improve the speed at which officials serve travellers,” she said.