After days of long delays at the Lebombo Border Post, the Border Management Authority (BMA) confirmed on December 26 that operations have returned to normal, with more than 18 450 travellers processed the previous day.

“While the majority of travellers were processed through automated systems, only 450 women and children were processed manually and are currently being fully captured and reconciled on the Enhanced Movement Control System (EMCS),” BMA commissioner Dr Michael Masiapato confirmed.

The improvement followed a decision by Masiapato, together with Home Affairs Deputy Minister Njabulo Nzuza and senior officials, to temporarily revert to manual processing after frustrated travellers had waited for days to cross into Mozambique.

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Masiapato and Mozambican Interior Minister Paulo Chachine visited the border on Christmas Day to assess the situation and established that the electronic system had been overwhelmed by the high volume of travellers, rendering it unable to process large numbers efficiently.

The manual system allowed border officials to stamp passports and take cellphone photographs of travellers’ biographic pages, which were later uploaded into the system for statistical purposes.

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However, the temporary measure raised security concerns about wanted criminals potentially entering the country undetected. In response, Masiapato confirmed that manual processing was limited to South African and Mozambican nationals travelling for holiday purposes or to reunite with family members.

He reiterated that foreign nationals continued to undergo electronic checks via the EMCS and that should the system later flag a wanted individual, law enforcement agencies would be required to intervene.

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Demonstrating the BMA’s continued enforcement efforts, Masiapato said officials intercepted more than 80 pairs of Nike sneakers from an individual attempting to illegally bring the goods into South Africa on December 26. He also confirmed that a suspect accused of facilitating illegal immigration was arrested and charged with aiding and abetting in terms of the Immigration Act.

“In this regard, all affected individuals are being processed in line with applicable immigration and law enforcement prescripts,” he said.

Masiapato concluded that no congestion had been reported at the Lebombo Border Post as of December 26 and that authorities would continue to closely monitor the situation.