04 Oct 2022

With harmonised transport programmes and policies, African countries stand a better chance to benefit from trade agreements and protocols among them the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

Speaking at the on-going Cross Border Road Transport symposium in Kasane on Monday, Director of Transport Policy and Planning in the Ministry of Transport and Public Works, Mr Orapeleng Mosigi noted the importance of the transport industry in facilitating trade and implored all to standardise their programmes.

He said the success of the transport industry hinged on the implementation of the protocols signed by these countries noting the SADC protocol on Transport, Communication and Meteorology.

“The time has come to leverage the power of cohesion and collaboration to create and implement innovative solutions that will transform and accelerate change,” he said.

Mr Mosigi, therefore, implored participants to robustly engage in discussions that sought to help member states deal with challenges confronting cross border road transport in the region and identify solutions in the context of regional development and trade facilitation.

He said failing to come up with solutions and innovations would not fail the Tripartite Transport and Transit Facilitation Programme (TTTFP) but would also fail AfCFTA. 

The TTTFP is made up of member countries of the SADC, Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa and Eastern African Community.

He said beyond COVID-19, it became apparent that there was need to rebuild and strengthen systems hence  the transport sector was called upon to demonstrate leadership and commit to implementation of regional programmes and reforms.

Mr Mosigi said one of the lessons learnt from COVID-19 was that counties must adapt and accelerate efforts to address the challenges and lead change in facilitating and promoting road transport in the region.

Cross Border Road Transport Regulators Forum (CBRT-RF) chairperson, Mr Enio Costa called for elimination of barriers and harmonisation of road transport instruments, which were a challenge to cross border road transport.

Mr Costa said the CBRT-Forum would continue to engage the public and private sectors to explore the transport sector further and use resources in a competitive manner.

He said it was important that all interventions were not in parallel with road safety and that the solutions should contribute to the socio-economy of the region.

Meanwhile, the five-day Cross Border Road Transport symposium is intended to provide a platform for policy makers, regulators, transport operators and researchers to review the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on transport and trade sectors and renew efforts to address the challenges.  Ends