A company that lives up to its name – literally!

For advice on doing overborder
clearing and forwarding, it’s
logical to go to a reputable firm
with overborder as part of its name.
Willie Stuart, founder and owner of
Speedy Overborder, says that a reason
the Jo’burg to Gaborone route is one
of his company’s most profitable is
that the drivers have “down pat” the
procedure to move goods swiftly
through border customs operations.
But more use of available technology
would make cross border passage not
only faster but also more coherent,
so that clearance becomes a routine
procedure with no surprises.
“Data should be entered into a
central system available to all nations’
customs services, telling them that a
truck is coming through. This is what
the SADC protocols are calling for.
It should be as easy as using an ATM
machine. Trucks with their cargo
already entered should be waved right
through once their identification code
is checked by customs agents,” Stuart
said.
Fuel prices may be an unpredictable
factor, but efficiency and cost savings
can become institutionalised if customs
agents use the tools already at hand.
An example Stuart cites is the
situation at the Swaziland/SA border,
where his company’s trucks travelling
from Gauteng with their break-bulk
cargo for overnight delivery are
passed by SA customs, but then have
to endure a second inspection by
Swazi customs.
“It’s as if they don’t trust the South
African agents and they want to do the
whole procedure again. For a delivery
service like ours when every minute
counts, this is a problem that should
not be,” said Stuart.
But addressing such problems
– Swazi trucking firms are in
communication with their customs
department – is what Speedy
Overborder has come to be known for
in its two decades of service – an asset
valued by its customers.