Dar expected to grow cargo by 25% this yeat

Cargo volumes at Dar es Salaam port are expected to rise as much as 25% this year, helped by expanded capacity and improved efficiency.

It acts as a trade gateway for landlocked states such as Zambia, Rwanda, Malawi, Burundi and Uganda, as well as the eastern region of Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Last year the port handled 14.4 tonnes of cargo, and is expected to reach 18 million tonnes this year..

Tanzania said it wants to increase capacity to 28 million tonnes a year by 2020, after having signed a R7 billion deal last year with the World Bank and other development partners to expand the port.

The plans to build two new berths would double the number of containers handled by the port each year to 1.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), from the current 600 000 TEUs.