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Gaborone, Botswana — The leaders of Botswana and Namibia have signed an settlement that may enable their residents to cross the 2 international locations’ border with out passports. Beginning instantly, residents of the 2 southern African international locations will solely be required to provide their id playing cards at crossing factors.
Botswana’s president, Mokgweetsi Masisi, and his Namibian counterpart, Hage Geingob, launched the passport-free journey association on the Mamuno border crossing.
Masisi stated introducing the usage of id paperwork for journey is important to foster unity between the 2 neighbors and different southern African states.
“The authorization of the usage of nationwide id paperwork to cross our nationwide borders, is a transparent demonstration of our steadfast dedication to advertise relations between our international locations and foster social cohesion amongst our residents, in addition to improve regional cooperation and integration,” Masisi stated.
Namibian President Geingob says the transfer is a key step towards integration amongst international locations of the Southern African Growth Convention, SADC, and finally your complete continent.
“We’re taking the primary steps in the direction of realization of (the) SADC Protocol on the facilitation of motion of individuals, not solely items however individuals,” Geingob stated. “In the identical vein, steps like these might kind a basis whose stepping stones might result in the trail in inspiring Africans to achieve continental integration.”
Namibia and Botswana, two of Africa’s most politically steady international locations, share a 1,500-kilometer-long border with 5 official crossing factors.
Geingob stated abolishing the usage of passports is not going to open doorways to felony components to cross borders with out detection.
“Anyone was saying that we’re going to enable the criminals to now roam round freely and do what they will do,” Geingob stated. “I’m telling you, no, that’s not the difficulty. If you’re a felony, we’ll get you. To the residents of our two international locations the usage of id playing cards as journey paperwork is being put in place for the comfort of our residents. It’s your venture and its success relies on you.”
Masisi says following the signing of the settlement, Botswana will introduce an digital id card.
“The Botswana passport is an digital doc that incorporates the biometric data that can be utilized to confirm and authenticate the id of vacationers by means of a pc scan. On this regard, the Authorities of Botswana has additionally launched into a course of to remodel the nationwide id card to an digital id card,” Masis stated.
Botswana’s minister of Dwelling Affairs, Annah Mokgethi, was a part of the working group that, beginning in 2019, explored the potential of ending the usage of passports between the 2 international locations.
“That is indisputably a monumental achievement which is able to ease motion and significantly affect on the lives of the folks of our two international locations and the area at giant,” Mokgethi stated.
Botswana and Namibia turn out to be the primary international locations in Southern Africa to abolish the usage of passports to journey between them.
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