Two border posts in Kenya and Tanzania are to be officially launched in August leading to combined operations of relevant government agencies and faster flow of goods between the two countries.

According to Trade Mark East Africa (TMEA), who are the main consultants on the project, Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete and Uhuru Kenyatta the President of Kenya, are expected to visit the refurbished facilities at both Holili  in Tanzania and Taveta in Kenya under the One Stop Border Post (OSBP) system.

The project is one of the major steps towards eliminating non-tariff barriers and ease movement of goods and services across borders. 

An OSBP facility is aimed at reducing time-spent at the border posts. For this case, plans are for reducing the time for clearing trucks and passengers by at least 30%.

Previously a transit truck could be cleared after 27 hours but now drivers can get moving within nine hours. 

Likewise, passenger documentation will be cleared within three to five minutes while waiting at the various counters, unlike before when passengers had to wait for longer periods.

Officials say improved flow of goods will make the EAC region a better and cheaper place to do business and more attractive to foreign investors.

It means goods entering the country can have all the customs paperwork sorted from the other side without going through a cumbersome process at the border.

Under the One-Stop-Border project, all officials involved in the process of clearing people and goods come under one roof.

In the recent past, traders have for years complained about the numerous and lengthy customs documentation while crossing borders within the region. This has not only cost them time and money but goods are delayed in transit hence disrupting supply chains.

In a statement TMEA said the two projects, which started in 2011, has been financed by them soon after the immediate signing of the bilateral agreement between Tanzania and Kenya.

The two countries have already started using the facilities starting early June 2015. 

The construction of the Tanzanian structures that costs  $6 million was successfully completed in April last year, while the Kenyan buildings in Taveta were completed in May at the cost of $8.3 million,

In addition, TMEA is currently financing 13 other OSBPs in East Africa, including one at the Burundi/Tanzania border – the pilot post that is proving that the system works – at the cost of approximately between USD7m and USD8.5m each.  

Each post consists of an office building for the border agencies, parking for trucks, a ramp for offloading goods, an inspection and verification warehouse and other facilities at every border post.