Governments across southern Africa should leverage existing port and inland logistics networks to streamline cargo movement into key mining regions like Zambia’s Copperbelt and the DRC, says Mohammed Akoojee, chief executive and managing director of DP World Sub-Saharan Africa.
Speaking during a CNBC Africa panel on The Role of Economic Zones in Driving Regional Growth and Global Trade, Akoojee highlighted the inefficiencies plaguing intra-regional freight transport, particularly between SACU members such as South Africa and Botswana.
“It’s hard to justify why we don’t have seamless, pre-cleared cargo movement between countries in the same customs union. SACU is the oldest customs bloc globally. You’d expect better co-ordination,” said Akoojee.
The problem is especially acute at border posts like Groblersbrug and Martin’s Drift, where delays are routine despite the cargo often having been cleared before it even leaves the port.
“These aren’t complicated problems to solve,” Akoojee remarked. “It currently takes us around 65 days to move freight in and out of the Copperbelt. That timeline is totally unnecessary.”
Industry consensus is that a round trip from South Africa to the Copperbelt – regardless of the specific corridor – should take no more than two weeks, assuming efficient processing.
Akoojee believes real-time tracking and data-sharing technologies are already in place to help reduce delays, particularly within SACU borders. “We have the tools. What’s missing is cooperation between states to eliminate unnecessary red tape.”
The result of inaction, he warned, is steep: long waiting times at border crossings that inflate transport costs and eat into company margins. “In some cases, just sitting at a border can make up nearly half the operational cost of moving freight in Africa,” he said.
One example of progress in the region is the Kazungula One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) on the Zambezi River, which links Botswana and Zambia. Logistics experts, including Mike Fitzmaurice of the Transit Assistance Bureau, have praised Kazungula as a benchmark for efficiency.
However, the success of Kazungula has also thrown the inefficiencies of other crossings – like Groblersbrug and Martin’s Drift – into stark relief. The modern infrastructure and processes at Kazungula highlight how little has changed at older crossings along the Limpopo River.
According to Fitzmaurice, there’s little point in discussing regional harmonisation without equivalent upgrades across all border posts. “Kazungula is proof of what’s possible, but unless other borders are brought to the same standard, it’s an uneven playing field,” he said.
He noted that recent congestion at the N11 route into Botswana has somewhat eased, with average northbound border delays reduced to around 36 hours. Still, surges in demand – such as the current boom in sulphur shipments for Zambian and DRC mines – can spike delays to over four days. Even cargo that has been customs-cleared, often including hazardous materials, is held up, parked alongside non-compliant trucks due to limited space and outdated infrastructure.
Busi Mabuza, chairperson of the Industrial Development Corporation and head of the B20 Trade & Investment Task Force ahead of the upcoming G20 Summit in Sandton, voiced her agreement during the CNBC panel. “Government needs to act with greater urgency. Public and private sectors must collaborate more effectively to remove the structural barriers to trade,” she said.
Mabuza supported calls to expand the Groblersbrug border beyond a single-lane configuration. She criticised the Department of Public Works for excluding the N11 corridor from its current list of land border upgrades.
Fitzmaurice has echoed that sentiment, stating the South African government’s lack of focus on this key transit route is “deeply concerning.”
Reference:
- Freight News