Traders blame inefficiencies, delays for rising port costs
Wednesday March 03 2021
By ANTHONY KITIMO
Summary
Shippers Council of Eastern Africa (SCEA) Chief Executive officer Gilbert Langat said there has been an average of four ships waiting to dock at the port due to a number of factors.
The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has attributed the current increase in the number of vessel waiting to dock at the Port of Mombasa to a surge in cargo imported after Covid-19 pandemic cessation.
KPA Acting Managing Director Rashid Salim said the port is experiencing peak moments with recorded full container berth occupancy “with minimum vessel delays”.
Dredging up government support
To compete with Colombo Port, goverment support is crucial - Vibhu H×
For cost-effective exports/imports, Govt must bear the cost of dredging and share maintenance charges at major ports
When the international container transshipment terminal at Cochin Port was inaugurated in February 2011, the operator of the Cochin box terminal at Vallarpadam DP World had envisaged handling a cargo volume of one million TEU (Twenty Foot Equivalent Units) in the first phase with a potential growth in traffic up to 4 million TEUs in the final stage.
Container traffic handled in 2019-20 reached 0.631 million TEUs short of the expectation of one million TEUs in the first stage. However, current trends and developments suggest that there is a significant surge in container volumes handled. DP World is understood to have approached the Cochin Port Trust and the Centre to get the approach channel deepened to bring in very large container ships drawing a draught
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Understanding the role of Foreign Direct Investment in port development
Private sector investment and involvement in developing ports emerged as a significant requirement in the 1980s. By this time, many ports had become bottlenecks to the efficient distribution chains of which they are an essential component. Government investments into port development was categorized as ‘White Elephant Syndrome’ due to the following three main problems, illustrated by port congestion and consequent chronic service failures, contributed to the gradual deterioration of service quality during this period.
The first reason for a lack of port service quality was the inability or unwillingness of many governments to invest in expensive port infrastructure or the ‘misinvestment’ in infrastructure (providing facilities that were badly matched with the needs of foreign trade and shipping). During this period, a number of beautifully constructed port complexes became ‘white elephants’
Colombo, February 15: Private sector investment and involvement in developing ports emerged as a significant requirement in the 1980s. By this time, many ports had become bottlenecks to the efficient distribution chains of which they are an essential component. Government investments into port development was categorized as White Elephant Syndrome due to the following three main problems, illustrated by port congestion and consequent chronic service failures, contributed to the gradual deterioration of service quality during this period.
The first reason for a lack of port service quality was the inability or unwillingness of many governments to invest in expensive port infrastructure or the misinvestment in infrastructure (providing facilities that were badly matched with the needs of foreign trade and shipping). During this period, a number of beautifully constructed port complexes became white elephants