The AT provincial delegate in Tete Âmido Abdala, said all the goods seized includes seven cars, cell phones, 18,866 tons of sugar, three bales of used clothing, 16 packs of sodas, 67 tires, among other products.
“We also seized various quantities of chemicals. Much of the merchandise was confiscated on the border of Cuchamano”, the official told a media briefing in Tete on Monday.
According to the official, most people resort to clandestine cross-border activities largely because they cannot afford the financial obligations for travel documents, visa fees, border taxes, work permits, as well as import and trade licenses.
“We are stepping up surveillance at our borders. We do also in coordination with the forces of the countries with which we do the border, namely Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia,” he said.
In Tete, the main borders are of Cuchamano, in the District of Changara; Zobue in Moatize; Cassacatiza in Chifunde district, which straddles the border with Zambia; Calomue, in the District of Angonia, this
limits itself also with Malawi.
“The illegal trade in contraband goods is the biggest single threat to the sustainability of a legitimate industry,” Abdala said.
The official added that the border fence continues to be trampled, cut and burrowed beneath by smugglers, poachers and migrants illegally moving across the border.