The Cost of Non-tariff Barriers to Business along the North–South Corridor (South Africa–Zimbabwe) via Beit Bridge: A Preliminary Study and Working Paper

The study identifies Zimbabwe's foreign exchange controls as the most costly non-tariff barrier (NTB) affecting bilateral trade between South Africa and Zimbabwe across multiple sectors. Other significant costs include administrative delays at the Beit Bridge border crossing and high freight costs resulting from a dysfunctional regional rail network. The paper also highlights congestion at Durban Port and specific sectoral barriers, such as South Africa's ban on second-hand vehicles traveling on its roads and two-stage conversion requirements for Zimbabwean textiles.

• Zimbabwe's foreign exchange controls are the most expensive non-tariff barrier (NTB) for almost all sectors trading with South Africa, often acting as an effective export tax due to the gap between official and market exchange rates.
• Administrative delays at the Beit Bridge border crossing are significant, with FESARTA research indicating that consolidated multiple entry (CME) trucks traveling from South Africa to Zimbabwe took an average of 2.5 days to clear the border.
• High freight and transport costs are a major administrative NTB caused by the dysfunction of the regional rail network, forcing businesses to rely on more expensive and less reliable road transport.
• Durban Port suffers from capacity and efficiency issues, leading to truck queues of up to 5 km and delays of 3–6 hours, costing transporters approximately R300 (US$46) per hour per truck.
• South Africa imposes a trade policy NTB by banning second-hand vehicles from the Middle and Far East from using South African roads when traveling to destinations north of the border, adding approximately US$700 to the cost per vehicle.
• The South African government requires a 'two-stage conversion' for Zimbabwean textiles to be imported duty and quota free, a requirement the Zimbabwean industry views as an excessively onerous NTB.
• Transporters are increasingly diverting freight from the Beit Bridge route to the Groblers Bridge on the South Africa–Botswana border to avoid Zimbabwe's administrative NTBs and chronic diesel shortages.
• The implementation of a single administrative documentation (SAD) system for traffic from South Africa to Malawi via Zimbabwe and Mozambique reportedly reduced transit times by nearly 40%.

APA

Mthembu-Salter, G. (n.d.). The Cost of Non-tariff Barriers to Business along the North–South Corridor (South Africa–Zimbabwe) via Beit Bridge: A Preliminary Study and Working Paper. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dttp_pap_mthembu-salter_ntb_20070827.pdf

Chicago

Mthembu-Salter, Gregory. The Cost of Non-tariff Barriers to Business along the North–South Corridor (South Africa–Zimbabwe) via Beit Bridge: A Preliminary Study and Working Paper. South African Institute of International Affairs, n.d. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dttp_pap_mthembu-salter_ntb_20070827.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Mthembu-Salter |first1=Gregory |title=The Cost of Non-tariff Barriers to Business along the North–South Corridor (South Africa–Zimbabwe) via Beit Bridge: A Preliminary Study and Working Paper |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dttp_pap_mthembu-salter_ntb_20070827.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{mthembusalterndcost, author = {Mthembu-Salter, Gregory}, title = {{The Cost of Non-tariff Barriers to Business along the North–South Corridor (South Africa–Zimbabwe) via Beit Bridge: A Preliminary Study and Working Paper}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dttp_pap_mthembu-salter_ntb_20070827.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }