Mozambique: Ponta do Ouro border post reopens

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Mozambique: Ponta do Ouro border post reopens

7:31 CAT | 04 Jan 2021

Photo: O País

The border post at Ponta de Ouro, on the frontier between Mozambique and the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal reopened on Friday, after a closure of more than nine months.

The border post closed in March 2020, under the restrictive measures imposed by the South African authorities, in their attempts to check the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Pont de Ouro border post is of particular importance for South African tourists who wish to visit the beach resorts of the southernmost Mozambican district of Matutuine. The Mozambican immigration authorities expect to see heavy use of the border post on Sunday, when tourists return to South Africa after the New Year festivities.

On Friday morning, according to Radio Mozambique, there was little movement across the border. But the head of the border post, Samuel Mabunda, told reporters that all the border services are in place.

“All our forces are ready”, he said. “We shall attend to travellers coming from South Africa, and those who are leaving Mozambique. The joint force of the immigration authorities and the Frontier Police is ready. We’re also organized in terms of materials. We have enough material to attend to all the travellers”.

Mabunda added that the authorities have stepped up measures of prevention against Covid-19 at the border.

“In terms of preventing Covid-19, the border post is safe”, he said. “The health authorities are doing their job and are validating the Covid-19 tests”. All those crossing the border must display a valid Covid-19 test, showing that they are not carrying the coronavirus that causes the disease.

Reopening Ponta de Ouro will relieve the pressure on the main border crossing between Mozambique and South Africa at Ressano Garcia.

On Friday morning, the Ressano Garcia post was forced to close for three hours, because three immigration staff on the South African side of the border tested positive for the coronavirus. The installations on the South African side were closed, while they were disinfected.

Source: AIM