Mozambican authorities said Wednesday they have discovered falsified negative COVID-19 test results, required for international travel, being sold at the country’s largest land border with South Africa.
Both countries re-opened borders for international travel on October 1 following closures imposed by the coronavirus pandemic restrictions.
It is mandatory for travelers in and out of Mozambique to present a negative coronavirus test taken less than 72 hours prior to departure.
“We will work on identification and authentication mechanisms to make the test results more reliable,” Daniel Chemane, health director for the capital city Maputo, told public radio.
A health ministry source said the government will now itself conduct tests and issue its own certificates for travelers planning to leave the country.
Coronavirus tests have so far been done only at private hospitals, mostly located in the capital Maputo which is 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the land border.
The tests cost between $50 (42 euros) and $100, which is equivalent to the monthly minimum wage in Mozambique.
Many travelers who use the Ressano Garcia land border crossing are informal traders who go to South Africa to buy goods for resale back home and find the test fees prohibitive.
