The government has begun strictly enforcing its suspension on the export of raw lithium and other unprocessed precious minerals, halting hundreds of haulage trucks at Forbes Border Post in a move aimed at accelerating local beneficiation. The directive, announced by Mines and Mining Development Minister Polite Kambamura, seeks to maximise revenue from Zimbabwe’s vast lithium reserves, a critical mineral used in electronic batteries and clean energy technologies.

Forbes Border Post, the eastern corridor linking Zimbabwe to Mozambique’s Beira Port, has overtaken Beitbridge as the country’s busiest entry and exit point for commercial trucks, authorities say. The surge in traffic has exposed persistent operational bottlenecks: long queues, incomplete pre‑clearance documentation, and delays that slow cross‑border trade despite recent digital and infrastructure interventions.