The Southern African Development Community (SADC) with support from the European Union (EU), under the Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) has launched the Namibia Coordinated Border Management (CBM) Strategy and Time Release Study (TRS) Report for the Trans Kalahari Border Post to enhance trade efficiency and regional integration. The event took place in Windhoek, Republic of Namibia on 12 and 13 March 2025 respectively.
The CBM Strategy and TRS were developed and undertaken to assist Namibia in addressing bottlenecks, cumbersome procedures, and uncoordinated operations among border agencies, while also tackling inadequate infrastructure. The initiative aims to reduce goods clearance time and the cost of doing business at ports and border posts, thereby boosting intra and extra regional trade among SADC Member States and the rest of the world.
The Strategy calls for the establishment of competent implementation structures to perform the functions that include: overseeing the implementation of the CBM concept, promoting continuous cooperation among border agencies and border offices, promoting bilateral relations with adjoining states, coordinating national, cross-border and regional trade facilitation measures and programmes, benchmarking, monitoring, evaluation and reporting on border-post performance; conducting hearings on proposals for introducing new cross-border formalities, maintaining liaison with economic operators and handling public complaints concerning border operations, and carrying out border management communication and awareness activities.
Overall, it is expected that the implementation of CBM in Namibia will help to expedite the movement of goods across borders, reduce transaction costs, increase the country’s level of trade competitiveness, fulfil commitments under the trade agreements and contribute to meeting the WTO trade facilitation requirements. Further, it is also envisaged that the adoption of the CBM concept will assist in simplifying and harmonising trade documentation and border procedures, enhance the predictability of control procedures based on risk management, improve security, and enhance cooperation and coordination of border agencies.
The TRS is a flagship Trade Facilitation Instrument which also support the implementation of the Regional Industrialization Strategy, anchored in the regional value chain as part of consolidating the SADC Free Trade Area, in line with the Regional Indicative Strategy Development Plan (RISDP) 2020-2030.
The broad objectives of the study included to measure the efficiency and effectiveness of the processes at a Trans Kalahari border in Namibia, with specific objectives of establishing the impact of the current processes, procedures and systems on trade facilitation, identify bottlenecks in the clearance and/or constraints impacting on the performance of Customs and other border regulatory agencies, and recommends solutions.
The TRS Report established that the average time taken to clear imported goods at the border, from the time a truck arrives at the Entry gate at the border to the time it exits at the Exit gate, is 5 hours and 31 minutes. Further the Report established that the average time taken to clear goods for export through Trans Kalahari border, from the time a Truck arrives at the border at the Entry gate to the time the truck is released at the Exit gate is 4 hours and 34 minutes.
Mr. Sam Shivute, Commissioner of Namibia Revenue Agency (NamRA) highlighted that the launch of the CBM National Strategy for Namibia and the adoption of the Inter-Agency Standard Operations Framework on CBM demonstrated the commitment of the government to promote the SADC agenda and of its commitment to implement the measures under the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), which Namibia ratified on 9 February 2018.
He emphasised the necessity for Member States to implement coordinated border management concept, supported by robust information sharing among administrators along the corridor, to significantly enhance the efficiency of regional trade facilitation efforts. Additionally, Mr. Shivute underscored the importance of continuously upgrading border posts, seaports, and road infrastructure to improve trade by ensuring the effective and efficient movement and clearance of goods.
Mr. Alcides Monteiro, Senior Programme Officer for Customs and Task Manager of the European Union and SADC Trade Facilitation Programme (EU-SADC TFP) at the SADC Secretariat, emphasised the necessity of implementing appropriate trade facilitation measures and instruments for the consolidation of the SADC Free Trade Area. He highlighted the TRS as an initiative that will streamline the movement of goods and services, thereby increasing competitiveness and the volume of intra-regional trade among Member States.
Mr. Monteiro indicated that the implementation of TRS recommendations will enhance the ease of doing business and attract foreign direct investment, enabling economies to transition from low to medium, and from medium to high, income levels. He further underscored the importance of enhancing cross-border coordination and harmonisation of processes, upgrading both physical and digital infrastructure at borders, embracing technological advancements in control and facilitation processes, and collaborating with other key stakeholders.
To help improve border operations, SADC developed Coordinated Border Management Guidelines that were approved by the Committee of Ministers of Trade in 2012 for allow Member States to implement the concept and it is an important catalyst for regional integration. The CBM concept is also one of the measures that has been adopted by the African Union (AU) to accelerate the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Furthermore, the CBM concept is also one of the recommended trade facilitation measures in the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation.
