Trucking in Africa is not for the faint-hearted considering that every country traversed comes with its own set of rules and regulations, standards and procedures, which are not necessarily aligned. At present cross-border road transport operations are regulated by a complex mix of unharmonised national, bilateral, corridor and multilateral instruments. The lack of alignment and consistency in the finer details of these agreements often results in inconsistencies and inefficiencies. This is compounded by different regulatory regimes implemented in different countries, silo law enforcement by different authorities operating in corridors, and permit systems that are not harmonised or standardised – all of which affects integration capabilities and sharing of information. Vehicle standards vary from country to country, resulting in restricted movement of certain vehicles and/or additional costs. Countries have implemented different weighing devices of different standards at weighbridges, which are not synchronised and not always properly calibrated. Vehicles are therefore weighed several times en route and duplications are common. According to Etiyel Chibira, an expert in cross-border road transport policy, the lack of harmonisation has a huge impact on the overall performance of the cross-border road transport s y s t e m . “A f r i c a must address these fundamental issues affecting cross-border transport for the continent to realise the opportunities presented by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA),” he told Freight News.According to the World Bank, road transport remains the dominant mode of transport, carrying more than 80% of trade on the African continent. At least 16 of Africa’s 55 countries are landlocked and dependent on road transport to access regional as well as international markets. This points to the importance of road transport and the need to urgently address regulatory fragmentation.Without addressing the numerous road transport regulatory issues, the continent will struggle to realise the goals of the AfCFTA considering that regulatory fragmentation is possibly still the biggest non-tariff barrier (NTB) impacting cross-border trade.In a working paper for the Trade Law Centre (tralac), Chibira argues that this fragmentation sits at the heart of the inefficiencies and unpredictability in the truck operating environment and has huge consequences for trade – including delays, long transit times and high logistics costs.“If Africa is to improve intra-continental trade then addressing road transport regulatory issues is a priority that requires urgent action,” he says.According to Chibira, the cost and quality of road transport services are of critical importance to trade competitiveness, and while this is heavily inf luenced by the quality of hard and soft infrastructure, it is in the regulatory fragmentation where some of the biggest challenges lie.“It is very clear that the AfCFTA presents a significant opportunity for Africa to improve intra-Africa trade, economic performance and the continent’s share of global trade. However, the continent needs an efficient transport system that enables faster travel and facilitates efficient cross-border movements.”According to Chibira, regulatory instruments and regulatory regimes must be harmonised.Regulatory fragmentation is possibly still the biggest non-tariff barrier (NTB) impacting cross-border trade.– Etiyel Chibira
