CARGO handled at the Mombasa Port increased by 10.1 per cent between January and September to 19.87 million tonnes, Kenya Ports Authority data shows. This is an increase of 1.82 million tonnes from 18.05 million tonnes handled in a similar period last year. According to KPA, total traffic analysis for the first three quarters of 2015, container traffic recorded a 10.8 per cent increase, from 731,300 TEUs ( twenty-foot equivalent units) to 809,984 TEUs this year.
Total transit cargo for the nine month period increased by 10.8 per cent from 5.3 million tonnes in 2014 to 5.8 million tonnes in 2015. Uganda remains the biggest destination of transit cargo, with its volume increasing by 459,227 tonnes (11.3 per cent) to register 4,508,776 tonnes against 4,049,549 tons in the same period last year.
“Uganda has continued to maintain a dominant position as our leading transit cargo destination accounting for over 77 per cent share of the total transit traffic,” KPA managing director Gichiri Ndua told port users during a meeting in Kampala. Rwanda’s cargo volumes also increased by 31.7 per cent from 169,868 tonnes in 2014 to 223,703 tonnes in 2015.
“Having been among the first EAC countries to fully embrace the Single Customs Territory and played a key role in the removal of other non-tariff barriers, we are hopeful for more positive growth of the country’s cargo volumes through Mombasa,” said Ndua at an earlier meeting with port users in Kigali. Other major players were South Sudan at 11 per cent share, DR Congo at six per cent, Tanzania at  three percent and Burundi at 1.1 per cent.
Ship turnaround time between January and September however slowed down to 3.6 days against 3.5 days in a similar period in 2014. Average container dwell time also increased from 3.6 days in 2014 to 5.1 days. “The main reason remains the introduction of the Single Customs Territory which has had issues of continued human intervention, resulting in slow down of documentation processes,” Ndua said. Ndua said KPA is determined to surpass last year’s one million TEUs record and projects 1.10 million TEUs this year.
Source: The Star

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