Good news for East Africa logistics

The 2012 East African Logistics Performance Index, released last week by the East African Shippers’ Council (EASC), shows “significant improvement” in port and corridor efficiency – but more still needs to be done. Ongoing reforms and infrastructure improvements at the port of Mombasa have yielded significant results as cargo dwell time has dropped from an average 6.5 days in 2011 to 5 days in 2012, according to the report. At the port of Dar es Salaam, cargo dwell time averaged 10 days in 2012. “Despite these improvements, the efficiency at these two ports is still below the internationally acceptable standards of a maximum three days' dwell time,” said Gilbert Langat, CEO of EASC. He added that, compared to 2011, corridor efficiency had slightly improved thanks to concerted efforts by East African Community (EAC) governments to upgrade regional road infrastructure and eliminate non-tariff barriers.