BORDER CONTROL

The President announced the closure of 35 of South Africa’s 53 land border posts in his first address to the nation on COVID-19 on 15 March.

These are borders posts with our neighbours in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and Mozambique. They are not the most important border posts for trade with our neighbours, but are where people cross, mostly to work in South Africa.

Minister Patel has emphasised that measures to control the movement of persons will not affect trade in goods with our neighbours. The President announced that measures of ‘surveillance, screening and testing’ at air, sea and land ports of entry will be strengthened.

How will they be implemented? They will be very important to ensure the health and safety of customs, immigration, police, veterinary and other officials who manage border posts. Truck drivers and others providing transport and logistics services to make trade possible are also particularly vulnerable.

A very important question to ask is: what happens to informal cross-border trade? We do know that most informal cross-border traders are women, who will now face myriad additional challenges to provide for their families and to care for those who do contract the virus. And what about those who are coming into South Africa – not at border posts – but through what is known to be a very porous border?  

when we talk about a porous border, we talk about a border that is easy to access and cross.  In other words the barriers or measures in place to prevent or allow passage in and out are not very effective and thus anyone can move easily between them.