Botswana: The 4th session of the Botswana-Zimbabwe Bi-national Commission is taking place in Botswana from Monday to Friday this week.
This year, Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi and Senior Officials meeting for the 4th Session of the Botswana-Zimbabwe Bi-National Commission (BNC), is taking place in Maun, Botswana.
The meeting is co-chaired by Ambassador Clifford Maribe, Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and his counterpart from Zimbabwe, Ambassador Rofina N. Chikava, Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.
The BNC, which is convened at the heads of state level, is a prominent bilateral mechanism that provides the two countries a platform to engage extensively on issues of mutual interest. At the last BNC held in 2022, Victoria Falls- Zimbabwe, the two countries, Zimbabwe and Botswana, had 43 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) that they wanted to sign.
The two countries have in the past agreed to fight cross-border crimes such as stock theft, border jumping and illegal hunting. They are expected to be some of the top priority agenda items whose agreements need urgent signing.
Another key issue is the smooth flow of people, goods, and services, which remains hamstrung without the establishment of the One Stop Border Post at Plumtree, as agreed to in previous sessions.
The two presidents recently hinted at the possibility of the use of Identity Cards as a form of identification instead of passports for their citizens when crossing the borders of the two countries.
Moreover, they also held an opening statement in which the Co-Chairs noted that the BNC demonstrated the commitment of their countries to strengthen and expand areas of bilateral cooperation. They also underscored the need to finalize pending draft instruments of cooperation.
The Senior Officials meeting precedes the Ministerial Session and the Summit scheduled for later in the week.