Mozambique commits R5m to reopening key Swazi border post

James Hall SWAZILAND - Mozambique’s Frelimo-led government has committed R5 million toward the reopening of the Mhlumeni border post in eastern Swaziland, thereby doubling the points of egress for hauliers from Swazi industrial sites to the port of Maputo. Currently, only the Lomahasha border post is operative. Closed since civil war fighting made the road to Maputo unsafe from Mhlumeni in the early 1980s, the post is expected to be opened in June, according to Mozambican High Commissioner to Swaziland, Zacharias Kupela. Kupela made the announcement at a meeting of concerned business people from the Matsapha Industrial Estate and the eastern town Siteki, who have decried the business losses associated with the border post closure. Hauliers like Express Cargo and Unitrans also seek the alternative route to Maputo to cut down on delivery distances in some instances. Kupela said the reopened Mhlumeni border post should be a catalyst for business growth and new investment on both sides of the border. “Swaziland will soon be in the lucrative position of having two border posts with Mozambique, while Zambia, although it shares a much longer boundary with us, has none at all,” noted Kupela.