Beitbridge Town
Beitbridge town was established in 1929, and was named after Alfred Beit, a British South African financier.
Beitbridge is situated on the border of Zimbabwe and South Africa, spanning the Limpopo River, and is the capital of Matebeleland South province. It is a port of entry and immigration post, handling millions of goods and traffMatabelelandth, between Zimbabwe and the Southern African Region. The town of Beitbridge was established in 1929, and was named after Alfred Beit, a British South African financier.
Beitbridge has one of the busiest border posts in Africa. It acts as the corridor which links South African ports to the rest of the sub region. Cargo going as far as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola and Malawi passes through Beitbridge Border Post making it a hub for international trade within Southern Africa.
Formal employment in Beitbridge is on the decline. Civil service, agriculture, construction, retail, freight forwarding & customs, are the few industry sectors that provide formal employment. Informal sector activities, such as vending, cross-border trading, “briefcase” clearing agents are now a major source of employment, and most of these illegal trade operations are showing positive growth.
Popular Sites
Alfred Beit Bridge
The Alfred Beit Bridge links Zimbabwe and South Africa, it spans the Limpopo River between Zimbabwe and South Africa.
The bridge’s construction began in 1927 and lasted up until 1929. The construction was financed by the South African Railways and Beit Railways Trust. The bridge carries a main road and a single railway track, it was named after businessman and financier Alfred Beit whose trust provided part of the finance for building the bridge.
Bietbridge Border Post
The border post at Beitbridge is an extremely important border between South Africa and Zimbabwe, with significant numbers of trucks and passenger vehicles going to and from the South African ports and, to a lesser extent, Maputo, and countries to the north such as Zimbabwe, Zambia, DR Congo and Malawi.
There are also instances in which the land route to the north, into Tanzania and even into Sudan, has been used in preference to the sea route. It is a border post that experiences extreme forms of traffic congestion at peak periods.
Vhembe Game Park
The game park was named after the Limpopo River, known as ‘Vhembe’ among the Venda people. Vhembe Game Park is located five kilometres west of Beitbridge town, within the jurisdiction of Beitbridge Town Council.
The man-made park, which overlooks the Limpopo River and Dulivhadzimo Gorge. It has various animal species, which include, lion, buffalo, leopard, hyena, and crocodile.
On the edge of the Vhembe Game Park are Dulibadzimu Pool, and a Venda traditional shrine which never dries up.
Dulibadzimu Stadium
Dulibadzimu stadium is home to three football teams, Tsholotsho FC, Border Strikers and Triple B. It was recently refurbished to accommodate more spectators, and now has a capacity of 5 000 seating.
The stadium is also used to host various cultural and entertainment events. Notably, on February 23, 2008, it hosted national celebrations to mark President Robert Gabriel Mugabe’s birthday.
