Botswana bans vegetable imports from SA — again

It seems South Africa’s exports are under siege, with countries either banning imports from the country or imposing higher tariffs.

Earlier this year, United States (US) President Donald Trump imposed higher tariffs on imports from South Africa, citing that he wants to make America great again, as higher tariffs will force Americans to stop importing products from other parts of the world.

Recently, Botswana banned vegetable imports from neighbouring countries, including South Africa, in a move to force people to buy local. However, South Africa is never this aggressive; it instead launches campaigns such as Proudly SA’s Buy Local to motivate people to support local businesses.

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‘Namibia and Botswana are the major culprits’

Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), said practices of some countries in the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) are worrying, as there have been countries restricting imports of agricultural products on short notice, with limited communication to other countries.

“Namibia and Botswana are the major culprits of this practice,” he said. “They blocked South Africa’s vegetable imports in 2021 and at various points in subsequent years.”

But when President Duma Boko took the reins in late 2024, he lifted the bans imposed by the previous administration, as inflationary pressures continued to bite households. It remains unclear what motivated the move to reinstate the ban.

It is understood that vegetables are still banned from being exported to Namibia.

Vegetables banned by Botswana

Sihlobo said the vegetables banned from export to Botswana include tomato, potato, white cabbage, red cabbage, white onion, red onion, watermelon, green papaya, beetroot, carrot, lettuce, strawberry, ginger, red and yellow peppers, garlic, and butternut.

“I sympathise with supporting local farmers and reducing their dependence on South Africa,” he said. “But I am uneasy with the drastic policy changes, with minimal consideration for regional ambitions.”

He raises concern that these restrictions come from countries that are a part of the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU). The SACU was formed to promote free trade and economic integration.

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SACU agreements

SACU is one of the oldest customs unions in the world, established in the early 1900s. It brings together South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Eswatini under a single customs territory.

It was created to allow free movement of goods within the region, apply a common external tariff on imports from outside the bloc, and share customs revenue among members. Its core purpose is to promote economic integration, trade cooperation, and balanced regional development, ensuring that member states benefit collectively from a unified trade framework.

Sihlobo noted that, nevertheless, the SACU agreement contains a loophole that allows such restrictions.

“The SACU Agreement states that ‘Article 18 (2) … notes that Member States have the right to impose restrictions on imports or exports for the protection of: health of humans, animals or plants, the environment, treasures of artistic, historic or archaeological value, public morals, intellectual property rights, national security and exhaustible natural resources.,” he said.  

“But I don’t see the current Botswana restrictions fitting the above description.”

How should SA respond?

Sihlobo said such restrictions have a significant financial impact on South African farmers who have, for many years, produced for the domestic market and the region at large.

He raised a question on how South Africa should respond to such events, given that this is not the first, nor the last time.

“South Africa’s response will need to be sensitive but firm,” he said. “While all this is frustrating, we should not be antagonistic or arrogant, but rather see this through the lens of understanding Botswana’s aspirations, formulate pathways for coexistence, and ensure better communication of policy approaches within the region.”

The Citizen has reached out to the department of Trade, Industry and Competition (the dtic) for a comment.

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