A Swiss-based supply-chain service provider responsible for moving 33 000 tonnes of maize from Mpumalanga through Mozambique to Kenya has been assured of assistance from the relevant South African customs officials.
According to the company, both the SA Revenue Service (Sars) and the SA Police Service (Saps) said they would do whatever they could to make sure the shipment was completed by the 14th of July by which time the vessel tasked with the ocean-leg of the bulk shipment is expected to berth at the Port of Maputo.
The assurance follows intermediation by the Federation of East and Southern African Road Transport Associations (Fesarta) after the company complained yesterday of congestion on the Lebombo-Ressano Garcia border, mainly caused by Covid-19 lockdown measures.
When Freight News spoke to an operations manager working for the company yesterday, he said they had managed to move less than a third of the bulk consignment, that truck turnaround times were too slow, and that they would be lucky if they had 20 000 tonnes at the berthing point in Matola come the 14th.
The manager said they had been forced to move at least 150 to 200 truckloads every week to meet their target, but because of coronavirus-testing and related delays at the border, had only managed about 85 trucks a week, resulting in escalating freight costs from sub-contracted transporters.
And although Sars and Saps assured the service provider of their cooperation in getting his trucks through the border on time, transporters responsible for getting the maize to port said that no trucks would be working today.
This came amid fears that xenophobia-related truck violence could affect transport on the Maputo corridor.
The company though expressed his gratitude to Fesarta and said they were still hopeful of making target.
