Project News

This technical cooperation project has been implemented since December 2020 to improve customs operations at two OSBPs in Southern Africa: one at Kazungula, between Botswana and Zambia, and another at Chirundu, between Zambia and Zimbabwe. In July 2022, the first training program for border officials and officers under the project was conducted at the Kazungula OSBP. Also during the month, the project carried out several other onsite activities, for Chirundu as well as Kazungula.

[The term OSBP refers to the legal and institutional framework, facilities, and associated procedures that enable goods, people, and vehicles to stop in a single facility in which they undergo necessary controls following applicable regional and national laws to exit one state and enter the adjoining state.]

Map of the North-South Corridor and OSBPs (Source: Google Maps)

1. First Joint Committee Meetings Held in a Bilateral Physical Format

For the first time since its commencement, the project supported several bilateral committee meetings in a physical format. Compared to the previous virtual meetings, the participants were able to exchange views more actively while they jointly reviewed the progress of project activity plans and made recommendations on ways forward.

On 19 July 2022, the third meeting of the Chirundu Joint Steering Committee*1 was held in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. This committee consists mainly of headquarters officials from the two countries, and a total of 20 committee members and other participants from Zambia and Zimbabwe attended. In addition, at both Kazungula and Chirundu, officials and officers from the border agencies of the neighboring countries participated in the fourth quarterly meetings of the respective Joint Border Coordinating Committees*2.

*1 A Joint Steering Committee is a bilateral committee that addresses strategic and technical issues regarding the focus OSBP at the headquarters level of the agencies concerned.

*2 A Joint Border Coordinating Steering Committee is a committee that conducts necessary day-to-day coordination regarding OSBP operations at the bilateral border level.

Chirundu Joint Steering Committee Meeting in Lusaka, Zambia (July 2022)

In addition, a JICA Infrastructure Advisor at the African Union Development Agency - New Partnership for Africa's Development (AUDA-NEPAD) participated in the fourth meeting of the Kazungula Joint Border Coordination Committee, and presented to committee members the third edition of the OSBP Sourcebook*3, which was published and launched in June 2022, and to which three of the project members contributed as team members.

*3 The OSBP Sourcebook: The OSBP Sourcebook was first published in 2011 to remove various barriers to cross-border trade and provide guidance to facilitate logistics and safe overland movement. Since then it has become the standard reference guide for officials and officers from various ministries and agencies at both the headquarters and border levels who are involved in land border procedures in Africa, and the recently completed third edition has been updated to reflect changing circumstances and challenges regarding OSBPs, such as the establishment and operationalization of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and the growing need to strengthen infectious disease control measures at borders due to the spread of COVID-19. The revisions in the third edition will contribute to improved policy positioning of OSBPs, and better meeting challenges and implementing improvement measures.

Informative links follow:

• The 3rd Edition of the OSBP Sourcebook: "Technical Consultation Meetings for Preparation of the 3rd Edition of the OSBP Sourcebook"
• The 3rd Edition of the OSBP Sourcebook (external link)
• AUDA-NEPAD: African Union Development Agency - New Partnership for Africa's Development (external link)

Presentation of the OSBP Sourcebook to Botswana Official at Kazungula

2. First Procedures Manual Meetings in Kazungula and Chirundu

The first meetings were held in Kazungula and Chirundu to review and update OSBP Procedures Manuals*4. Over a few days, the project team shared proposed revisions of the procedures manuals, and border officials and officers from a wide range of governmental organizations including customs, immigration, police, and port health, actively discussed the current situation and challenges for OSBP operations and considered necessary revisions of the manuals. A total of 23 officials/officers participated in Kazungula and 44 in Chirundu.

*4 The OSBP Procedures Manuals will cover a wide range of areas including OSBP operations, clearance procedures, the duties of border officials/officers, and business continuity planning. The Chirundu OSBP Procedures Manual has not been updated in over 10 years; while a draft of the Kazungula OSBP manual was prepared in 2019, it has not yet been finalized. Both of these manuals require restructuring and updating to reflect changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to streamline overlapping procedures between and among border agencies.

First Meeting on OSBP Procedures at Chirundu, Group Photograph (July 2022)

3. First Training Program for Border Officials/Officers at Kazungula

A three-day training course on OSBP principles, operations, and procedures was conducted for border officials at the Kazungula OSBP. The training was conducted jointly for Botswana and Zambia, with a total of 30 participants from the two countries. Various modes of training, including lectures, groupwork, and discussion panels were used, ensuring active participation and effective learning.