Mombasa Port transshipment cargo experiences 20pc decline

Transshipment cargo volume at Kenya’s Mombasa Port appears poised to decline for the second consecutive year, presenting an initial challenge to President William Ruto’s administration’s goal of establishing the port as a global trade facilitator of high repute.

Provisional data show goods destined for other ports that were handled at Mombasa fell at a faster rate of 19.87 percent.

A data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), the busiest seaport in Eastern Africa managed approximately 1.2 million tonnes of transshipment cargo during the period, in contrast to the previous figure of 1.5 million tonnes.

The transshipment business an increasingly key focus for most leading ports across the world at Mombasa fell 7.43 percent to 2.3 million tonnes last year, shining a spotlight on its position as the gateway into East and Central Africa in the long run.

The data indicates a modest year-on-year increase of 4.15 percent in the volume of imports passing through Mombasa, totaling 16.75 million tonnes over the seven-month period. Additionally, exports saw a 6.40 percent rise, reaching nearly three million tonnes.

Total cargo throughput at the port was flat last year, falling by 1.94 percent to 33.88 million metric tonnes, the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).

Ruto has decided to implement comprehensive reforms with the goal of improving efficiency and positioning Mombasa as a globally competitive port.

The Northern Corridor stretches about 1,700km from the Port of Mombasa through Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and Eastern DRC, while the central corridor is estimated at 1,300km beginning at the Port of Dar es Salaam into Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Eastern DRC.