19 January 2025
The border between two huge African countries is one of the shortest land boundaries in the world.
Borders serve as the physical display of a nation’s sovereignty, identifying the territory under its control. Even the smallest international borders are usually marked by strict security and border control.
For example the frontier between North Korea and South Korea the demilitarised zone (DMZ) stretches for about 155 miles, marked by high fences and barbed wire. It was established between the two countries at the end of World War Two and the border is one of the most heavily militarised in the world.
However, the 150-metre long boundary between the sub-Saharan African countries of Botswana to the southeast and Zambia to the northwest is absolutely tiny in comparison – and is one of the shortest land boundaries in the world.
The Botswana-Zambia border connects two tripoints on the Zambezi River, in a small town called Kazungula in Zambia. The town is actually the point at which four countries come close to meeting – Zimbabwe and Namibia as well – a site known as a quadripoint.
The boundaries were made while the nations were under colonial rule and while all four of the other boundaries received official delimitations, the Botswana–Zambia frontier has never been formally agreed upon.
The ever-shifting river channels and the lack of any agreements addressing the issue before 2000 led to some uncertainty in the past as to whether or not a quadripoint legally existed.
It has now been acknowledged that the international boundaries contain two tripoints joined by a short line roughly 150 metres (490ft) long, now crossed by the Kazungula Bridge. Today, the two states maintain good political relations. The bridge – a road and rail bridge – opened for traffic in May 2021, replacing the Kazungula Ferry.
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1999119/african-countries-border-150-metres-long
