The Trans-Kalahari Corridor runs 1,700 kilometres from Walvis Bay on Namibia's Atlantic coast through Windhoek to Botswana's capital Gaborone and onward to Johannesburg, South Africa. For Botswana, which is entirely landlocked and heavily dependent on South African ports for import-export logistics, the corridor provides a meaningful alternative: Walvis Bay is closer to Botswana's western regions than Durban and offers faster vessel turnaround times. The corridor is particularly significant for Botswana's diamond exports, which represent over 80 percent of its merchandise export earnings.
Infrastructure Upgrades
The Trans-Kalahari Highway has been progressively upgraded on both the Namibian and Botswana sections. The Buitepos-Mamuno border crossing between Namibia and Botswana operates a simplified joint customs arrangement reducing average crossing times significantly. Botswana is also exploring a rail connection to Walvis Bay that would dramatically reduce the cost of bulk commodity exports including coal and manganese. Logistics operators and importers serving Botswana and southern Namibia can access freight and corridor contacts on intra-africa.com.
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