(Ecofin Agency) – Facing persistent congestion and growing competition from Dar es Salaam, Mombasa Port must upgrade its infrastructure and equipment to remain the primary maritime gateway for East Africa.
Mombasa Port is one of the key targets of the investment program the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) is set to roll out in 2025. According to the KPA’s Director General, construction projects will begin in January to enhance the port’s capacity and meet growing demand. Planned works include the construction of Berth 19B, with a capacity of 300,000 TEUs, and Berth 23, with a capacity of 500,000 TEUs, financed through negotiations with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
Investments in equipment and the upgrade of the Terminal Operating System (TOS) are also planned. Ultimately, these projects aim to alleviate the capacity challenges of Mombasa Port, which serves as the primary maritime gateway for East Africa, handling a significant portion of transit traffic for landlocked neighboring countries such as Uganda, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Ethiopia. This critical role translates into high demand and pressure on its infrastructure, which previously prompted the construction of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to streamline cargo transportation.
In 2022, Mombasa Port handled approximately 34 million tons of cargo, with containerized traffic projected to reach at least 1.48 million TEUs by 2024, according to KPA forecasts. However, the port’s underperformance in recent years has benefited Dar es Salaam Port, which is positioning itself as the region’s leading hub for port operations. Tanzania has made significant investments in port infrastructure and launched major rail projects to connect several of the aforementioned countries. This intensifying competition has resulted in a decline in Mombasa’s throughput, which dropped to 35 million tons in 2021
Improving infrastructure standards alone will not be enough to permanently resolve congestion issues at Mombasa Port, especially since supporting infrastructure still has significant shortcomings. The SGR network, intended to reach the border with Uganda, remains incomplete due to a lack of funding. Additionally, there are challenges related to border crossings. According to a recent World Bank report, Kenya is among the African countries whose land borders are particularly burdensome due to tariff and non-tariff barriers (lengthy administrative procedures, high transit fees, police extortion, various restrictions, etc.).
These barriers, according to the institution, generate additional costs equivalent to traveling 1,043 km by road, representing approximately 3.2 days of transit time.
Source: Agenceecofin
