Congestion, corruption and faulty systems plaguing border posts across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) are not helping engender peace of mind as Africa prepares to become a free-trade area, expectedly by June or July.From the end of last year right through the festive season various transit points, many of them the usual suspects in the gallery of rogue crossings, failed to contribute to an efficient supply chain in more than one way.Whether it was Sydonia, the Customs system of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) regularly experiencing downtime, Zimbabwe not able to keep electronic seals charged because of electricity issues, Zambian police trying to extort bribes on the back of protectionist procedures, or officials simply not coping with volumes – transporters travelling through the SADC had a tough time keeping to their route schedules.From Kasumbalesa on the DRC/Zambia border, to Chirundu south into Zimbabwe, and Beitbridge into South Africa, SADC border posts were conspicuously derelict considering that, as a trade bloc, the community will be playing a vital role in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTFA).Says Mike Fitzmaurice, CEO of the Federation of East and Southern African Road Transport Associations (Fesa r t a): “There is not a single corridor or crossing across the SADC that is not a problem at the moment.”Namibia, thanks to its logistics strategy aimed at turning the country into a throughput hub, was an exception to the rule.“But even so,” says Fitzmaurice, “once freight from Namibia passes into Angola or Zambia it becomes problematic.“Even corridors from Namibia through Botswana to South Africa should be good because they’re on the Southern African Customs Union, the oldest authority of its kind in the world.“Unfortunately, for some reason, there are regular issues with the SA Revenue Service (S a r s).“All along Botswana’s border with South Africa, whether it’s Skilpadsnek, Kopfontein, Ramatlabane or Martin’s Drift, there are huge delays.”Disillusioned by nagging delays and negligent officials, Fitzmaurice says that it’s difficult to pinpoint where things are going wrong.“There should be people stopping things from falling apart but no one is taking ownership of the problem. No one is making sure that things get fixed and that it works.”He says even the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency (CBRTA), established to address concerns taken up by consultants like Fitzmaurice, is ineffective. “They’re almost like a puppet. They’re supposed to act as an intermediary between government and the private sector but they don’t really have a clue as they don’t know how to fix things.“I don’t even bother with them anymore. I go straight to Sars.”Asked whether he’s ever had assistance from the SADC Secretariat, Fitzmaurice said “no”.Commenting on whether the Department of Transport (DoT) has been a little more progressive as a road transport enabler, Fitzmaurice said: “The DoT is on its own mission. “You need political will to fix problems and the problems we have can be fixed. The private sector knows they can be fixed, but there’s no will.”Fitzmaurice said the only conclusion that could be drawn from all the hiccups and holdups across the SADC road transport sector “is that where there is chaos there is opportunity”.
INSERT: Where there is chaos there is opportunity.– Mike Fitzmaurice