Broken fences and river crossings feed border trade near Musina
A news feature describes goods smuggled to Zimbabwe through broken fences and across the Limpopo River. It says the trade sustains a large informal economy in Musina, about 10km from the Beitbridge border.
A man interviewed said he bought a solar pump in South Africa for R8,000. He said he was supposed to pay R2,500 in duty at the border. He said he negotiated and paid a customs officer R500, and got no receipt.
A woman interviewed said a truck load can earn R1,000. She said young men hide in bushes to watch for soldiers, and she pays them R50. Two soldiers at a roadblock said they now turn Zimbabweans around instead of detaining them.
Hermanus Schoeman owns a game farm on the border and has had to close it. He said many cattle that cross onto the farm have foot-and-mouth disease. He said South Africa cannot control the epidemic while animals keep crossing.
Schoeman said about 100 donkeys appeared on his farm the day after he put out lucerne. In his words: "As soon as it’s dry, donkeys and cows cross into the farm."
Key facts
- Who
- Ernest Makatu (traffic official who is with the Build One South Africa party and intends to…); Zander Coetzer (handles security for game farms in the area); Hermanus Schoeman (owner of a game farm along the border that he has had to close); Ihsaan Haffejee (photographer)
- What
- A GroundUp feature reporting from Musina and the border area describes unofficial crossings through broken fences and across the Limpopo River, where goods are smuggled to Zimbabwe, and says the trade sustains a large informal economy in Musina.
- When
- 29 October 2026
- Where
- Musina, Limpopo, Beitbridge
- Status
- Reported