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There have been concerns about the large number of travelers on the border into Zimbabwe.
FILE: The border post of the Beit Bridge between South Africa and Zimbabwe. Image: @ HomeAffairsSA / Twitter
JOHANNESBURG – Parliament’s home affairs portfolio committee has called for an urgent intervention at the Beitbridge border post.
There have been concerns about the large number of travelers on the border into Zimbabwe.
This comes as South Africa struggles to slow the spread of COVID-19 amid a second wave.
Congestion at the Beitbridge border post during the holiday season is nothing new.
But this is not a normal end of the year.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, travelers must submit a negative test that is no more than 72 hours old before they can cross the border.
But enforcing this is likely to be difficult as lines at the border post cause many to camp out before crossing into Zimbabwe.
There is concern that travelers passing through Beitbridge, some of whom began their journey in the Western Cape, will expire their certificates before crossing the border.
Parliamentary committee chairman Bongani Bongo said that while they understood the need to cross borders for trade, strategies should have been put in place to mitigate this.
He said congestion had also highlighted the urgent need for the border management agency to function to improve agility in dealing with situations like this.
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