KPA counts its major losses over strike

The first 36 hours (Wednesday and Thursday) of the workers’ strike at the port of Mombasa last week cost the Kenyan Ports Authority (KPA) over 100 million Kenyan Shillings in handling fees and disrupted the supply of goods to Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Kenyan newspaper, The Daily Nation, cited KPA managing director Gichiri Ndua as saying that the Sh100 m estimate did not include the cost shipping companies incurred to run their vessels or store their goods at the port.

He reportedly said that in those two days, 15 ships had berthed at the port waiting to be loaded or to unload their cargo while seven others were still waiting to berth on Friday. “With the daily cost of running one vessel ranging between Sh5 million and Sh10 million, depending on its size, the losses from the strike are massive,” said Ndua.

According to news reports, more than 5 000 workers, who are members of the Dock Workers’ Union (DWU), went on strike last Wednesday to protest the new National Hospital Insurance Fund rates. At the time of publication, the workers were expected to return to work over the weekend.