The Border Management Authority (BMA) and the South African Revenue Service (SARS) are today participating in the Lesotho–South Africa Steering Committee (STEERCO) meeting aimed at strengthening border management operations.
“The upcoming meeting in Ladybrand [in the Free State] will provide South Africa and Lesotho with an opportunity to advance bilateral discussions on shared border-management priorities and strengthen cooperation towards more secure, efficient and integrated border operations,” the BMA and SARS said ahead of Thursday’s meeting.
Key areas of discussion include progress on the joint action plan, smart-border initiatives, One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) arrangements at Maseru and Ficksburg, border infrastructure and the Border Operating Model.
“Other agenda items include risk management, traveller processing, enabling legislation and the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) pilot. The discussions will contribute to ongoing efforts to strengthen coordination between the two countries, improve border operations and support regional trade and economic development,” the two parties said in a joint statement.
The meeting forms part of the World Bank–Southern Africa Regional Trade Facilitation Programme (SARTFP) Technical Joint Working Group and Steering Committee engagements aimed at strengthening border management and trade facilitation in the region.
The BMA’s participation at the meeting is led by Commissioner Dr Michael Masiapato, while the revenue services’ participation is led by Director of Customs Border Operations, Ports of Entry and Customs Compliance, Beyers Theron.
SARS and the BMA said the meeting follows previous engagements held in Oshoek in August 2026, which involved South Africa and Eswatini, and Komatipoort in September 2026, involving South Africa and Mozambique.
The engagements focused on trade facilitation, border reform and the implementation of joint action plans to improve border efficiency and facilitate the movement of people and goods across the region. -SAnews.gov.za
