Industry calls for ports authority

16 Nov, 2018 - 00:11 0 Views

The ManicaPost

Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Senior Business Reporter
INDUSTRY has called on Government to expedite the establishment of a National Ports Authority to remove administrative bottlenecks at ports of entry which have prevented the smooth flow of goods and people into the country.

Zimbabwe National Chamber of Commerce Manicaland chapter chairman Mr Clive Chinwada said there was urgent need to resolve the congestion at the border posts, particularly at Forbes, where cargo is delayed for days as Zimra officials failed to timeously clear goods.

“In the case of Manicaland, inefficiencies at the Border Post (Forbes) have become a common feature where long queues are the order of the day.

“We believe that as part of measures to increase the ease of doing business, the establishment of the Ports Authority is long overdue,” he said.

He said the ranking of Zimbabwe at number 153 out of 190 countries in trading across borders was a cause for concern to industry.

“The Mozambican authorities have said the queues at the Border Post have nothing to do with them because they clear the goods in Beira so when they get to the Border, they are being delayed on the Zimbabwean side. We do not want that to continue because part of the goods coming into the country are critical commodities such as fuel. We need to resolve access into the country immediately,” said Mr Chinwada.

Government has long mooted the idea of a National Ports Authority, which is expected to play a key role in taking care of infrastructure issues on all ports of entry.

A ports authority is a government or quasi-government public authority formed by a legislative body to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure.

Its aim is to improve the state of infrastructure and clear administrative bottlenecks at the ports of entry.

Zimbabwe is the only country in the Southern African region which does not have a ports authority.

Zimra has in the past said there was no need to establish such an authority as it was a financial drain on the fiscus. However, most ports authorities across the world are self-sustaining. The country has 15 ports of entry which have remained porous as travellers are faced with numerous challenges from corrupt officials to numerous clearing agents who cause confusion.

Share This:

Sponsored Links

We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey

This will close in 20 seconds