South Africa strengthens security at ports of entry

by IANS |

Johannesburg, Aug 4 (IANS) South Africa is enhancing security at ports of entry by introducing measures such as the use of drones and traceable stamps, an official from the Border Management Authority (BMA) said.

Michael Masiapato, commissioner of the BMA, made the remarks while briefing the media about some new security measures to be implemented across ports of entry. He said they sent eight border guards for drone pilot training, and six of them have already graduated on July 14, Xinhua news agency reported.

"To increase our drone operation capacity, we plan to send more border guards for drone pilot training as we move to more modernized border law enforcement and improve our detection of a variety of cross-border crimes such as illegal migration, trafficking, goods, and human smuggling, among others," said Masiapato.

He said the drones are used for surveillance and increased visibility, particularly in the identified vulnerable segments of the borderline. The BMA has introduced new security stamps used by immigration specialists at ports of entry to tackle corruption, while partnering with the South African Reserve Bank to train border guards in counterfeit detection and currency handling.

"This initiative forms part of the BMA's broader commitment to strengthening national security and represents a deliberate step toward enhancing the integrity of border control processes," Masiapato said. "Each of the immigration officers has been allocated a specific stamp with its unique number linked to each officer to trace back should their allocated stamp be found to facilitate illegal migration into the country."

Masiapato said that in the first quarter of the 2025/2026 financial year, the BMA processed a total of 8,582,250 passengers entering and leaving South Africa. He added that the BMA intercepted and deported 9,954 people who had attempted to enter the country illegally.