Beitbridge border automated services undergo upgrade

The Department of Immigration in Zimbabwe has initiated the upgrading of its automated services to align with the modernised Beitbridge Border Post, one of the busiest land ports of entry in Africa. The port, which handles around seven million travellers annually, along with nearly 1,200 commercial trucks, 200 buses, and 2,100 light vehicles daily, is set to experience a further increase in traffic as new systems streamline operations.

The ongoing transformation at Beitbridge has involved the automation of services and the segregation of traffic into commercial, buses, light vehicles, and pedestrian categories. These improvements have drastically reduced waiting times, with commercial cargo now being processed in under three hours and regular travellers spending less than 30 minutes to clear immigration and customs, assuming all documentation is in order.

Speaking on the advancements, the Regional Immigration Officer (RIO) for the southern region, Mr. Joshua Chibundu, confirmed that the department has completed the installation of a new Online Border Management System (OBMS) at Beitbridge.

"As part of our drive to improve the ease of doing business, we have successfully set up the Online Border Management System (OBMS), which is now operational," Mr. Chibundu said. "The OBMS complements the existing automation at the border, allowing us to process travellers more quickly across all terminals, while capturing bio-data and efficiently managing flagged travellers."

The OBMS also auto-generates the permitted days for various types of visitors, providing 30 days for holiday tourists, seven days for business travellers, and three days for those in transit.

The new system is expected to be particularly beneficial as the department braces for a spike in traffic during the festive season, with the OBMS eliminating many of the delays caused by manual processing.

Looking ahead, the Department of Immigration is planning to install automated gate systems, commonly known as eGates, to further enhance convenience and security. The eGates will enable travellers with biometric passports to pass through the border with minimal human interaction. This system, which scans passports and verifies identities automatically, is projected to drastically reduce waiting times for travellers and increase the overall efficiency of border control procedures.

The modernisation of Beitbridge, undertaken as a public-private partnership with the ZimBorders Consortium, is part of Zimbabwe's broader efforts to upgrade its ports of entry. ZimBorders is responsible for managing the facility until it is handed over to the government at the end of the concession.

With 60 percent of commercial cargo now being cleared in under three hours, border authorities are also exploring the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to further improve the efficiency of operations at Beitbridge. The improvements are set to make the port a critical hub for regional and international trade, while also easing the movement of travellers.

The enhanced service delivery at Beitbridge aligns with global trends toward more secure and streamlined border management through advanced technological systems, positioning Zimbabwe at the forefront of regional trade facilitation.