The signing of a 30-year concession agreement with Djibouti’s Ports and Free Zones Authority (DPFZA) to operate, modernise and expand the Port of Tadjourah has added another angle of development to logistics in the Horn of Africa region.
According to the agreement, Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Gateway Terminal (RSGT) will aim to turn the port on the Gulf of Tadjoura into a major multipurpose terminal with an initial handling capacity of five million tonnes per year.
Signed in Jeddah, the agreement concludes a Memorandum of Understanding signed earlier this year and marks a major advance in maritime cooperation between Saudi Arabia and Djibouti.
Situated directly north of the Port of Djibouti, Tadjoura is expected to alleviate demand and will handle bulk cargo, especially potash exports from Ethiopia.
It will help to ease congestion in Djibouti City and provide Ethiopia with an additional trade route from its northern regions.
It is also expected to support economic growth in northern Djibouti, strengthen the country’s overall logistics network, and diversify national development and the country’s position as a key maritime hub in East Africa.
Commissioned in 2017, the Port of Tadjourah serves as a strategic outlet for Ethiopian exports, including potash mined in the Afar region’s Danakil Depression, along with fertilisers, grain, construction materials and containerised cargo.
Under RSGT’s management, the port is set for a comprehensive upgrade aimed at increasing efficiency and expanding its role in regional trade.
The move dovetails with Ethiopia’s plans to develop new rail connections linking Tadjourah, Assab and Massawa ports to mineral-rich areas such as Afar and Tigray. These transport corridors are intended to facilitate the movement of goods from Ethiopia to global markets, enhancing economic integration across the Horn of Africa.
The collaboration underscores growing Middle Eastern investment in East African infrastructure and reaffirms Djibouti’s status as a vital maritime gateway for landlocked Ethiopia and a key hub within the broader East African trade network.
