Africa must prioritise corridor development if it wants to increase trade with itself and improve economic integration.This includes a more in-depth look at border operations that are currently seriously hampering the f low of trade.According to Duncan Bonnett, a director at Africa House, several borders are of concern, in particular in southern Africa, with truck queues often longer than 15km waiting to cross from one country to the other.“Covid has had a huge impact on operations, but border posts have been a concern since before the pandemic, with the basic functionality not always being there,” he said. “Whether it be not enough communication or proper coordination, the reality is that the delays experienced at the border posts are simply bringing corridors to a complete standstill at times, and that does not bode well for increased trade. We simply cannot move goods efficiently along our corridors until such time that borders are functioning efficiently.”According to Leslie Mpofu, executive director of the Trans-Kalahari Corridor Management Committee (TKCMC), it is critical to see more cooperation between countries when it comes to corridor development. “We are not doing enough to promote and develop our corridors in the region,” he told Freight News. “We need more purposeful decisions and implementation along our corridors. We have to reduce non-tariff barriers, increase harmonisation of procedures and processes, and ensure we are investing in the right infrastructure to meet the region’s needs. Corridors are not in competition, but complement each other, making it essential that we not just focus on one corridor but all of the corridors.”According to the Trade Law Centre (tralac), coordination and collaboration are required between all stakeholders – including regulatory authorities, law enforcement and logistics service providers. It is the only way to address some of the inherent challenges being experienced, including excessive congestion, delays, long transit times and high logistics costs.The organisation has also indicated the importance of corridor development for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) because if left undeveloped, corridors will create bottlenecks, making it impossible to achieve any of the AfCFTA objectives.Lwazi Mboyi, the acting CEO of the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency (C-BRTA), says there is increased recognition of this by stakeholders and efforts to improve communication and cooperation are increasing.“Stakeholders understand there is a need to consistently engage with each other if we are to address the numerous challenges that we face. It is also, however, about consistently planning and putting pressure on the various governments and relevant authorities to ensure there is movement on the actions being taken on the corridors – even if that movement is not fast.”He said through the Cross Border Road Transport Regulators’ Forum (CBRT-RF), consistent awareness of what was required to develop corridors in southern Africa was raised, while it also held stakeholders accountable.Another challenge in the region has been the lack of a dedicated transport executive at SADC. “We are encouraged by the fact that this is now being addressed and SADC are in the process of recruiting someone for this position,” said Mboyi, indicating that it was necessary to have a driver in the seat to move processes forward.
