Dar port widens basket of cargo it will handle
Thursday March 11 2021
A ship offloads cargo at the Dar es Salaam Port. FILE PHOTO | NMG
The port of Dar es Salaam has announced it will increase the types of cargo cleared to include fertiliser, industrial and domestic sugar, edible or cooking oil, wheat oil products, gas, liquefied petroleum gas, chemicals or any liquid related products.
The Tanzania Shipping Agencies Corporation told stakeholders that with effect from March 15, the agency will commence executing its mandate of clearing the additional products.
“In view of the foregoing, shippers and consignees or their agents are obliged to submit all documents pertinent for clearing and forwarding of import and export cargo specified under Section 7(1)(a) of the Act, as amended, which are to be declared to the Commissioner for Customs and Excise with effect from March 15, 2021. The documents should be submitted electronically and in hard copies to the Manager Clearing and Forwarding,” the notice reads in part.
Currently, section 7(1)(a) of the Tanzania Shipping Agencies Act of 2017 gives exclusive mandate to TASAC to carry out clearing and forwarding functions relating to import and export of minerals, mineral concentrates, machinery, equipment, products and/or extracts related to minerals and petroleum, arms and ammunition, live animals and Government trophies.
Cost of doing business
These are the fruits of the Tanzania Ports Authority's strategy to capture new markets and increase its throughput following heavy investment funded by the World Bank to expand port operations.
Meanwhile, Kenya Revenue Authority was forced to suspend the implementation of the Licence for Conveyance of Goods under Customs Control where each truck was to pay $200 for the licence for access into the port to pick or drop cargo.
But KPA has continued to take advantage of already established infrastructure to increase cargo handling and already the authority has started loading dangerous cargo at Container Terminal 2 as opposed to a previous arrangement where loading zone was only done at Container Terminal 1.
Economic hub
The authority’s projections for February and March 2021, compared with similar period in 2020 and 2019 indicates that performance will surpass the 2020 and 2019 performance.
“We are projecting to handle over 115,000 TEUs against 108,000 TEUs handled in 2020 at the same time,” said KPA’s acting managing director Rashid Salim.
As a vote on confidence in the port operations, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has opened new offices in Kenya in its Africa expansion.
While the main business will be managed from the port city of Mombasa, the company will also have an office in Nairobi, and in Uganda, one of Mombasa's important port users.
Hapag-Lloyd handles agricultural goods out of Kenya, especially tea, coffee, fruits and textiles, and brings in chemicals, foodstuffs and a wide range of goods made of plastic or rubber.
“Kenya is the economic hub of East Africa and the most important growth region on the continent. By opening our new office in Kenya, we expect to continue our robust growth on the African continent,” said Hapag-Lloyd’s Dheeraj Bhatia, senior managing director for Middle East region.