Africa-Press – Botswana. In only nine months, 425, 881 people passed through the Martin’s Drift port of entry in the northern region, making the border the busiest compared to the rest in 2023.
This demonstrates a perfect geographical positioning of Botswana with regards to regional integration and validates economic gain from the provision of extended services to both the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) members on transit.
Ms Mable Bolele, the BURS general manager for communications, told BOPA between April and December last year that this port of entry recorded 110 616 vehicles entering Botswana and 119 923 leaving. Ms Bolele said during the same months, incoming passengers were 192 072 compared to 233 809 outgoing travelers, with imports recording a total of 9 924 against exports which stood at 12 556.
From the statistics shared, Ms Bolele said in the northern region BURS recorded a high peak in exports during the month of July 2023 (1 019) at the Ramokgwebana border post, while the lowest, 97, was recorded at the Kazungula One Stop Border Post (OSBP) in May 2023. She added that the highest number of imports were recorded at the Mamuno border post (1 212) in October 2023, and the lowest in April 2023 at the Ramokgwebana border post (126).
Collectively, Ms Bolele said at Ramokgwebana, Martins Drift, Mamuno and the Kazungula OSBP exports stood at 30, 188 recorded from April 2023 to December 2023, while imports at the same border posts during the same period stood at 22 714.
As for vehicles and aircrafts movement recorded during the same period, incoming transportation reached 337 067 compared to outgoing which stood at 309 246, she said.
Notably, she said though under renovations to be converted into a OSBP, the Pioneer Border in Lobatse also continued to record well over 15 000 incoming and outgoing vehicles throughout the months under review.
The purpose of travel through all borders is for commercial, small businesses, traders, visitors, studying, work and tourism, she said.
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