Africa-Press – Mozambique. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed interest in synchronising the border system and improving border processing with Mozambique to increase the flow of goods and services between the two countries.
“We in South Africa are taking back a very strong message from Mozambique that we should synchronise our border systems and improve border processing so that more and more services or products can be transported,” said the South African head of state during the Mozambique-South Africa Business Forum in Inhambane province, southern Mozambique.
According to Cyril Ramaphosa, who was on a two-da visit to Mozambique, the malfunctioning of the border system in Mozambique and South Africa could hamper trade between the countries, calling for an end to the delay in processing lorries from his country to Mozambique.
“This must come to an end. We must have a border post to do this, and we must use the same system that other regions of the world use. Europe is a good example,” Ramaphosa said, pointing out that on that continent, products and services are transported equally across all borders, allowing the income generated to be shared fairly.
He added that with the synchronisation of the border system and improved processing at the borders, trade between the two countries could double “because when producers know that their products will move very quickly, without wasting time and money, they will accumulate more and more products”.
“Bureaucratic procedures also deter investors. We also need to synchronise complex bureaucratic procedures on our continent. Europe is a very good example, and we need to study how Europe has managed to do this right,” Ramaphosa added.
In trade corridors, the South African President stressed that the two countries could also harmonise their work and simplify procedures and costs.
“South Africa is committed to working with Mozambique to address all these challenges and constraints [related to] border systems and improve border processing so that more and more services or products can be transported,” said the South African head of state.
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo said on the occasion that the event, which was attended by dozens of businesspeople and government officials from both countries, clearly and inspiringly confirms that Mozambique and South Africa have unique complementarities that can generate significant economic value when strategically articulated.
“Mozambique has a privileged geostrategic location, which gives South Africa an efficient and competitive gateway to regional and international markets. This structural advantage is combined with our macroeconomic stability and an environment that is increasingly open to investment,” Chapo said.
According to the President, this advantage creates ideal conditions for accelerated trade growth and the strengthening of direct investment flows, to the mutual benefit of both economies.
“Like South Africa, Mozambique is part of the African Continental Free Trade Area and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), additionally benefiting from preferential trade regimes with some countries on other continents, as well as with other strategic partners,” he explained.
As a government, Chapo said he would take care of implementing all types of facilitation measures, ‘which already stem from the law and public policies,’ without ever stopping to improve the business ecosystem.”
