Local clearance will cut down border delays

ROAD TRANSPORT operators who clear import consignments destined for overborder consumption with customs at their home base rather than at regional border posts, can cut down dramatically on transit delays.
That's the word from the National Inter-Departmental Structure on Border Control (NIDS)which has urged transporters to take this route.
We have found it can cut down waiting time from as much as two days at major posts such as Beit Bridge to one or two hours, says Brian van Niekerk, NIDS senior superintendent.
What most transporters don't realise is that they can clear their entire consignment at their nearest customs office, and merely present the document for checking and clearing at the border post.
This means the driver does not have to park his vehicle, wait in queues to fill in the relevant forms and then have a further wait while these are approved before getting the consignment checked. In many instances documents cleared at base are given the green light at the border without further checking processes being necessary.
After all, drivers have to get their passports, their visas and their insurance on home ground, so why not clear the goods at the same time.
NIDS is now working on a project to introduce a single document which will be accepted on both sides of the border.
We are hard at work on this matter, says Van Niekerk. It will take a little time to get it going but what we hope to achieve is what we term an equal type of document in a joint functioning system which can clear the vehicle on both sides of the border with minimal delay.
Asked how long this would take to achieve, he commented whimsically:
It took the European Union exactly 50 years to get theirs in order. I don't think we will be that long in achieving our purpose. At this stage I'd say we have gone a long way towards the target.
By Leonard Neill