Helping improve efficiency through Dar gateway

Damco Zambia’s new managing director brings with him intimate knowledge of Dar es Salaam, which is the preferred gateway for many Zambian importers and exporters. Canadian-born Scott Nisbet has been working in the Tanzanian port city for the past nine years, after moving there with his wife Tima to assist her East African-born parents who have business interests there. After about two years, the former head of logistics for Nortel Canada returned to his first career when he joined K & K Cargo Logistics, which handles copper and cobalt exports from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He believes his contacts in Dar es Salaam and understanding of the way the port and logistics operations work in the country will help Zambian companies to improve the efficiency of their exports and imports through the gateway. Nisbet will be using his experience in the metals industry combined with his Tanzanian knowledge to expand into the mining sector. “We have to be in the metals industry. Within the next two years we will have a full service office in the Copperbelt,” he says. The company will, however, strive to keep a balance. “There is so much cargo that is not mining related,” he adds. With Damco as a company only having started operating officially in Zambia in January this year, Nisbet sees this as an opportunity to build a company that differentiates itself in the market through its expertise and focus on service. “I come from a service industry,” he says. New hires will be selected according to their commitment to service, as well as their knowledge. With those skills and service ethic will come the tailoring of services to meet the individual needs of customers, backed by a global network that includes the Maersk shipping line. Damco is part of the AP Moller-Maersk Group. The Zambian operation will be focusing on three trade lanes – India, China and Dubai.