Rustenburg - Protests and road blockages along the Trans Kalahari Corridor (TRC) must be avoided, North West Community Safety and Transport Management MEC Mpho Motlhabane said on Wednesday.
"Any delay on this corridor by protests or any form of unrest contributes to delay on the economy of South Africa, Botswana and Namibia," he said.
"We need to facilitate the movement of goods and persons on the Trans Kalahari Corridor by simplifying the requirements and controls that govern the movement of goods and persons with the view to reducing transportation costs and transit times."
The Trans-Kalahari Corridor is a highway corridor that provides a direct route from Walvis Bay and Windhoek in central Namibia, through Botswana, to Johannesburg and Pretoria in Gauteng province in South Africa.
"We should change perception of communities residing along the corridor. Instead of seeing them as carriers of social ills criminalising them, we must realise that truck drivers bring the economic benefits by supporting local businesses," he said.
He said Trans Kalahari Corridor facilitates the growth of the manufacturing, tourism, agriculture, mining, energy and infrastructure industries.
South Africa is hosting Botswana and Namibia from November 19 to 26, in a bid to strengthen relations and improve cross border transactions and customs operations along the Trans Kalahari Corridor.
The structure was formed with an objective to contribute and promote trade facilitation within the three states through transport efficiency by simplifying and harmonizing the requirements and controls that govern the movement of goods and persons with to reduce transportation costs and transit times.
During the visit, the three countries would look into achievements attained and challenges experienced since the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2003.
They would further come with ways to deal with some of the challenges they were experiencing.
Motlhabane, Rustenburg mayor Mpho Khunou and High Commissioners from Botswana and Namibia, joined a law enforcement operation on the N4 highway in Rustenburg, doing spot checks and fines for various road violations as part of the broader integrated cooperation strategy.
Motlhabane urged motorists to be responsible and pay any outstanding traffic fines. He paid his traffic fines at the operation.