Board set to look into Beitbridge Border Post chaos

AN interim board has been set up by Government to look into the delays at the Beitbridge Border Post to guarantee the swift flow of travellers and traffic, ahead of the United Nations Tourism World Organisation (UNTWO) meeting.

Beitbridge is the busiest inland port in southern Africa and congestion taking place at the border post is an obstruction to Zimbabwe's bid to attract foreign tourists.

During a tourism stakeholders' meeting last Wednesday, participants said the cumbersome processes at the border post resulted in the country losing tourists to neighbouring countries instead of attracting them.

Responding to these concerns, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) chief executive officer, Mr Karikoga Kaseke, admitted that the Beitbridge Border Post was a headache to all but said that was to be addressed.

He said the tourism sector had pushed for an interim board to look into the matter urgently.

"An interim board has been set up. It will analyse the impact of problems and compile a report. It will make recommendations to ease movement of people in and out of the country," the ZTA boss said.

Mr Kaseke recalled a time when the Government tried to intervene in the chaos at the Beitbridge border post but its efforts fell by the wayside. He said a senior official team led by Presidential spokesperson, Cde George Charamba, including himself went to Beitbridge to investigate.

"No sooner had the investigation team left the town, the same problems we thought had we solved resurfaced again. Beitbridge is a headache to us all," he said.

The ZTA boss noted that the authority had received lots of complaints from tourists who vowed never to return to Zimbabwe.

"People who complain do not just tell you, they also inform other people, that way we lose business. Returning residents and tourists are searched, told to unpack everything whether they have big or small luggage because the officials want to see everything.

"The worst was when officials spotted people wearing what they thought to be new clothes or shoes. They would ask them if they paid duty for them. The minister of tourism (Walter Mzembi) took up the issue with Cabinet and it stopped," Mr Kaseke said.

After the holiday season, some even made suggestions to create a new border post between Zimbabwe and South Africa.

They suggested constructing another road to South Africa through Kezi where it would be upgraded and a new border constructed over Shashi and a road constructed through Botswana.

On the issue of roadblocks, identified as another stumbling block to swift movement, Mr Kaseke said Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri had agreed to meet him before the end of April.

"We will be meeting to see how the issue of roadblocks could be broached. Before I meet the commissioner general, I am inviting the Bulawayo tourism sector to have a paper ready with all their concerns or recommendations on roadblocks, which I will present to him," he said.

The ZTA CEO noted how all these problems were recurrent because of the dysfunctionality of the inclusive Government.

He said all the three political parties tried to score at each other, always blaming each other instead of solving the problem.

"But when it comes to praise all want a slice. We need to have a government that is accountable. I am not talking about elections or an election date or advocating for this or that but I am saying it's not good to operate under such a system," he said.