By Burnett Munthali
A ministry of trade Coordinated Border Management (CBM) monitoring team from capital hill says it is waiting for their Mozambican counterparts to fully implement the one border post in Mwanza district.
Deputy Director of Investment in the ministry, Diamond Chikhasu, who led the delegation, stated this today after visiting the border for CBM implementation.
Chikhasu emphasized that through the exercise, agencies will operate in a well-coordinated manner to avoid duplication of work and unnecessary delays.
The Immigration department, Malawi Revenue Authority, Malawi Police Service, and Malawi Bureau of Standards have been allocated offices in the new one-stop border post building on Malawi’s side.
Chairperson of the Joint Border Operation Committee, Maureen Ntambalika, observed that coordination has brought efficiency in operations at the Mwanza border.
The one border post concept involves the integration of various border agencies, such as customs, immigration, and quarantine, into a coordinated and harmonized approach. This allows for synchronized processes and procedures, enabling faster and more efficient clearance of goods and travelers.
One border post is important because it eases congestion at existing border facilities: By consolidating border control procedures, OSBPs help reduce congestion and long waiting times at border crossings, improving the flow of goods and people.
A similar one border post between Mwami/Mchinji OSBP was commissioned by the President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr. Hakainde Hichilema and the President of the Republic of Malawi, Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera on 7 December 2023.
The dream of Malawi having One Stop Border Posts finally became a reality thanks to tremendous construction progress achieved at Mchinji border station.
The One Stop Border Posts is among key modernisation initiatives whose objective is to reduce time for processing of imports and exports by bringing together all processing agents in one building or location.
The project is targeting Mchinji, Mwanza, Dedza, Muloza and Songwe borders where new stations will be constructed.
“The World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB) are financing these projects.
The AfDB funded the Mchinji One Stop Border Posts to the tune of US$5.8 million and the World Bank provided US$69 million for Songwe, Mwanza, Dedza and Muloza.
