A report on African ports released last week by global research
firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) shows that Dar es Salaam and Djibouti
may overtake Mombasa port as the regional hub.
The
report identified Durban (South Africa), Abidjan (Cote d’Ivoire) and
Mombasa as the most likely to emerge as the major hubs in Southern
Africa, West Africa and East Africa, respectively based on the degree of
port centrality, the amount of trade passing through a port, and the
size of the hinterland.
It also established that the
closest rivals for these ports, due to their better operational
performance, are Lagos-Apapa (Nigeria) and Tema (Ghana) as alternatives
to Abidjan, and Djibouti and to a lesser extent Dar es Salaam to
Mombasa.
“Djibouti poses much less of a threat to
Mombasa due to the latter’s larger hinterland and operational
efficiencies. If it was not for the close proximity of Dar es Salaam to
Mombasa, it would have been a major contender to be an East African hub.
Given their close proximity, it is unlikely that both Dar es Salaam and
Mombasa will both emerge as hubs,” reported PwC.
“Also due to Mombasa’s better hinterland connections and larger
throughput, it is more likely to fulfil the role of a hub, with Dar es
Salaam being a significant regional port.”
Both Tanzania and Djibouti have recently embarked on major developments on their ports in a bid to improve their operational performances and position themselves as continental hubs.
Both Tanzania and Djibouti have recently embarked on major developments on their ports in a bid to improve their operational performances and position themselves as continental hubs.
In July 2017, Tanzania announced
that it had received a $12 million grant from the World Bank and $345
million credit for its Dar es Salaam Maritime Gateway Project in a bid
to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the port for the benefit
of public and private stakeholders.
Its capacity is
projected to increase to 25 million tonnes over the next seven years.
This development will allow the port to half its waiting time at the
berth while increasing operational productivity.
The
project, which is expected to close in June 2024, is set to facilitate
the deepening and strengthening of existing berths, the construction of a
new multipurpose berth, deepening and widening of the entrance channel,
improving the rail linkages and platform in the port.
This
will, in turn, decrease trade and intermediary costs for businesses,
making it the port of choice for imports thereby strengthening the
competitiveness of the country.
Djibouti on the other hand, last year opened three new ports — the Doraleh Multipurpose Port, Port of Ghoubet and Tadjourah.
Djibouti on the other hand, last year opened three new ports — the Doraleh Multipurpose Port, Port of Ghoubet and Tadjourah.
The
Doraleh Port is strategically located, connecting Asia, Africa, and
Europe. It can handle two and six million tonnes of cargo a year on its
bulk terminal and breakbulk terminal respectively.
Port
of Ghoubet serves as the main gateway for exports from Ethiopia
handling ships of up 100,000 deadweight tonnes, with the capacity to
export over five million tonnes of salt a year. Tadjourah can handle a
capacity of four million tonnes.
Against this
backdrop, it is evident that the Mombasa port, which acts as a gateway
to other neighbouring countries such as South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi,
Congo D.R., Malawi, Uganda and Zambia, faces competition as the regional
hub. However industry experts say that despite the developments in
alternative ports, Mombasa still offers major advantages and will remain
the regional hub for years.
The experts say the
developments implemented by the Mombasa port since 2015 ensure that it
offers better services than its competitors.
“Since
2015, the Mombasa port has seen a new container terminal opened, an SGR
terminal that is operating now, modern equipment that has been
introduced for bulk handling and mobile cranes,” said Abhishek Sharma, a
logistics analyst at TradeMark East Africa, a not-for-profit limited
company that supports the growth of trade, both regional and
international, in East Africa.
There is also a new
custom system that is being put in place called ICMS, a regional
electronic tracking cargo system that is already operational in Rwanda
and Uganda and will be set up in in Kenya. This will enable the tracking
of trucks from Mombasa to Kigali which will reduce the cost of transit
bond.
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