Logistics delays constraining African exports

African exports are being hamstrung by transport delays, according to researchers Caroline Freund and Nadia Rochac. In a paper delivered at the 11th annual European Trade Study Group in Rome earlier this year, the researchers said they found that a 1% reduction in inland travel times led to a 1-2% increase in exports. Put another way, a one-day reduction in inland travel times translates into nearly a 3% reduction in all importing country tariffs. There is plenty of room for improvement, according to the research. It takes 36 days to process export documents in countries such as Angola, Zambia and Niger. In Denmark or Singapore it takes only one day to produce all necessary export documents. It takes 37 for the goods to be shipped from Bujumbura (Burundi) to Dar Es Salaam port (Tanzania). While customs and ports procedures take 17 days in Angola and Eritrea, they take two days in Switzerland or Belgium. According to the report, the biggest challenge facing African exports is transit costs. “One explanation for the domination of transit is that it is associated with more uncertainty than other costs. Our results imply that improvements in moving goods inland must be included in trade facilitation programmes in Africa,” say the researchers.