Customs disparities frustrate Botswana operators

CARGO VOLUMES into Botswana are surging year-on-year as mining projects stimulate and grow the economy, but disparities between Customs in South Africa and Botswana continue to frustrate trade into the importorientated country. The SADC region supposedly falls under a blanket common customs union, but as Anthony Lee of Transport Holdings Limited explains, this common customs blanket has many holes. “There is almost nothing common about the common customs union,” says Lee. “The two countries still have different tariff codes, with varying interpretations only slowing down the clearances. Requirements for documentation vary from official to official let alone from country to country.” Lee echoes the views of a number of transporters who have called for the standardisation of weighing at weighbridges in Botswana, as some weigh individual axles while others will weigh the axle load, and give a different weight, incurring penalties. There have been dramatic improvements in clearance times since the introduction of EDI, with the Martin’s Drift border crossing into Botswana reduced from 1 day to 2-4 hours, according to Lee. “We are hoping to continue our organic growth and further enhance the efficiency at Martin’s Drift when we get our on-site clearing office set up in the coming months.”