Developing transhipment products into Africa from South Africa has been a keen focus for neutral consolidator CFR Freight. According to Sean Menzies, Johannesburg ocean freight branch manager, South Africa is a viable less-thancontainer load (LCL) transhipment hub, providing a multimodal crosstrade solution into southern Africa and Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Eswatini (BLNE). “Africa has tracked positive year-on-year growth, and as such remains attractive for investment and infrastructural development,” he says. “However there are still regulatory challenges that impact the smooth flow of goods into and out of southern Africa. This is often experienced through slow border processing.” But, says Menzies, these challenges can be mitigated through proactive planning, and ensuring that all paperwork is accurate and in place beforehand. Menzies told FTW that the company had been able to extend its services into SADC and BLNE by linking its global LCL reach through its WorldWide Alliance network with its local South African intermodal operation. Another benefit, he says, is the ability to offer clients the option of cross docking their inbound containers onto breakbulk transport for on-carriage into southern Africa by leveraging its sister company ZacPak’s facilities. “This has the obvious advantage of negating any costly container deposits associated with shipping lines’ empty turn-in requirements.” The company is also planning to expand its air freight network following a successful year of exports, says air freight director, Stephen Bishop. “Exports have been good which is very positive considering we are in a depressed market. Our African destinations continue to be our main routes, a trend we predict will continue in 2020.” Bishop says network expansion will allow for increased delivery at place (DAP) and cross-trade solutions to enhance the air freight offering.
INSERT: Africa has tracked positive year-on-year growth, and as such remains attractive for investment and infrastructural development. – Sean Menzies