Mabolwe Border Crossing

Mabolwe Border Crossing is a border post between Botswana and Zimbabwe at Mabolwe, in the Bobonong area of Botswana's Central District, on the Shashe River. The post opened in June 2016. A 2019 report by the Botswana Press Agency (BOPA) described the approach as a 12-kilometre gravel road through the bush, with no public transport to or from the post; travellers on foot usually waited about five hours for a lift. There was no bridge over the Shashe River: crossing to Zimbabwe needed a four-wheel-drive vehicle, and when the river was flowing, movement was suspended until it dried up. In the rainy season the roads flooded and the post became virtually inaccessible. The report found virtually no mobile network coverage, and on a busy day the post handled about 50 people on foot and about 10 vehicles. Mabolwe is a small village near the eastern tip of Botswana's border with Zimbabwe; Statistics Botswana counted 816 residents at the 2022 census, in the Central Bobonong census district. Bobonong, about 80 km from Selebi-Phikwe, is the headquarters of the Bobirwa sub-district and home to the Babirwa, known for harvesting mopane worms. The Tuli Block, where the Northern Tuli Game Reserve lies, is about an hour's drive from Bobonong. The Department of Immigration has not published opening hours or the services available at Mabolwe, so confirming arrangements with the department before setting out is advisable, particularly in the rainy season.

6WJ6+P4W, Bobonong, Botswana
Bobonong

21°46′5″S 28°54′37″E