New customs regulations affecting a corridor which links South Africa, Botswana and Namibia, will be introduced on August 1, giving business in the region easier access to the Atlantic Ocean, an official said on Friday.
Frank Gschwender, a business development executive from the Walvis Bay Corridor Group (WBCG) said that the new regulations would mean only one administrative document would be needed for goods from South Africa, Botswana and Namibia transported along the Trans Kalahari Highway.
”Southern African Development Community (SADC) officals agreed at a three day meeting in Windhoek this week on the new transit scheme based on a single and common set of documents and regulations for road transport along the Trans Kalahari Highway,” he said.
”The new regulations will save business time and cost and substantially increase the competitiveness of the corridor.”
The highway, which stretches from Johannesburg through Botswana to the port of Walvis Bay in Namibia, gives landlocked regions access to the prime trans-Atlantic sea route.
”This is the first time in the SADC region that three customs authorities agreed on a joint document, common regulations and joint legal procedures,” Gschwender said.
He said the new regulations may be extended to Angola and similar ones introduced in the Dar es Salaam Corridor in East Africa. – Sapa-AFP