• Countries adopt a roadmap for one-stop border posts on key corridors
• Reforms aim to cut logistics delays and lower trade costs in the region
• Plans include upgrades to Beira’s fuel and freight corridor used by Zimbabwe

Mozambique and Zimbabwe signed several memorandums of understanding over the weekend to deepen economic integration, improve regional connectivity, and strengthen border security. The agreements were concluded during President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s state visit to Maputo. A timetable was approved for the rollout of one-stop border posts on the strategic Forbes–Machipanda and Nyamapanda–Cuchamano corridors.

Inspired by regional best practices, these facilities are expected to reduce logistics delays and costs for operators while improving customs coordination, helping ease the movement of goods and people. The effort aligns with broader ambitions of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) to expand intra-African commerce, still constrained by significant tariff and non-tariff barriers.

In its report “Optimal Investments in Africa’s Road Network,” published in September 2024, the World Bank highlighted land border procedures as one of the main constraints to intra-African trade. Crossing a border on the continent can generate additional costs equivalent to those of a 1,043-km road trip, or about 3.2 days of travel time.

The plans also cover petroleum logistics, a critical issue for Zimbabwe, which relies heavily on the port of Beira for fuel shipments. Authorities aim to modernize and secure the dedicated corridor to reduce delays that raise costs for the Zimbabwean economy. Designed to handle flows to Southern Africa—including Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia, and northern Mozambique—the port of Beira is also undergoing capacity-expansion work.