POLICY shift to harmonised customs and clearance practices in export and import transactions within the SADC region, including recognition of various documents as well as truck search procedures between countries, must be prioritised as part of measures to boost trade and improve economies in the region, stakeholders at the 20th Shipping and Forwarding Agencies of Zimbabwe (SFAAZ) annual general conference have said.
More than 130 delegates drawn from Government, regulatory agencies, ports, transport operators, financial institutions, and the private sector gathered in Nyanga for a two-day SFAAZ conference that ended on Monday.
In an interview on the sidelines of the conference, Zambia’s envoy to Zimbabwe Ambassador Brigadier General Wilson Tembo (Rtd), said: “Reducing border delays, harmonising customs procedures and improving transport corridors are viewed as practical steps towards regional integration, and this is very important.
“The diplomatic significance of this is that trade facilitation strengthens the implementation of the SADC Free Trade Area. It supports the broader goals of SADC Vision 2050 as well as the African Continental Free Trade Area,” he said.
“We know that efficient borders demonstrate political commitment to free movement of goods and services among member states. You find that goods moving from Zimbabwe to Zambia, here in Zimbabwe, has its own way of inspecting and licensing, the same thing in Zambia.
“If we can have one harmonised system for all countries in the SADC region, that will improve efficiency and ease of doing business owing to the uniformity of documentation.”
In a separate interview at the same function, Mr Laurindo Lampiao, the Embassy of Mozambique to Zimbabwe Deputy Head of Mission, said: “The Joint Trade and Customs Committee is working on exchanging information on export and import taxes to facilitate trade and remove barriers such as tariffs and non-tariff barriers. This is something that should be implemented quickly to improve our economies through trade.
“We strongly believe it is very important for the relationship of our countries in the region to find ways to improve trade and improve ease of doing business as a matter of urgency,” he said.
SFAAZ chief executive officer Mr Washington Dube said: “We believe that for a country to grow, there is a need for efficiency in its participation in international trade, buying and selling among ourselves. We should encourage more trade with our sister countries, Mozambique and Zambia, here.
“One of our challenges as a sector, we are here in Nyanga, close to Forbes Border Post. We have faced a lot of challenges there, and we are happy that the government is doing its part to address those challenges, especially queues that used to happen on the Zimbabwean side and are now a thing of the past.
“Queues have shifted to the Mozambican side, and we have highlighted that it does not bode well for international trade if trucks spend extended times at the border post. We have also highlighted challenges; for example, we feel that as the private sector, when a car is searched in Mozambique, it should be searched in Zimbabwe.
“There should be mutual recognition of customs and other procedures by the two countries. For example, a search done in Zimbabwe should be recognised in Mozambique.”
Mr Dube said the trade documentation also needs to be harmonised with the region.
“In terms of documents, we have various import and export documents. This speaks to the harmonisation of standards in SADC countries and the processes that are done in sister countries.,” he said.
“As the private sector, we feel that time is money and borders must not impede the movement of goods, but facilitate free flow movement. We have been calling for the harmonisation of the documents. For example, if it is a document that is required by customs in a certain country, we know that all customs fall under one organisation – the World Customs Organisation.
“Therefore, when we harmonise a customs document that works in Zimbabwe, that should work if you go to Mozambique or Tanzania. Let us say someone is exporting goats and they get a permit here in Zimbabwe; that permit should be mutually recognised in all the sister states, especially in the context of the African Union. We should have the same documents that are mutually recognised.
“Just like the driver’s license. Most of the countries in Africa recognise each other’s driver’s licenses. This is the concept that should be applied in terms of international trade. One has done their processes in Zimbabwe, they go to another country, and their documents are recognised and valid.
“This is actually very key, especially for countries like Zimbabwe, which are landlocked. We have relatively long distances from ports – Port of Beira, Port of Durban – which we use. When you consider the transit time and the time spent at the borders, they add up to the cost of final goods to the consumer.
“When you have that seamless movement, transit time would be reduced, meaning that costs of goods for the final consumer would be reduced for the good of our citizens.”
Over 32 Government departments, including the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, parastatals, and all stakeholders involved in international trade attended the conference in Nyanga as a clear sign of the seriousness of the Government and the private sector in tackling international trade challenges, with particular interest in the SADC region.
The theme of the SFAAZ 2026 conference was: ‘Customs, freight forwarders and border agencies: United in protecting society and facilitating trade:’
The conference comes hard on the heels of the Trilateral Joint Route management group and joint committee meeting where senior Government officials from Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique met in Harare early last month.
The meeting was convened under the framework of the three countries’ bilateral road transport agreements and served as a platform to strengthen regional cooperation, enhance transport connectivity, and facilitate the seamless movement of goods and passengers across the region.
-herald
