Although once considered a
development success story with
one of the fastest growing economies
in the world, Botswana has been
equally affected by global market
conditions.
Dean Mcintyre, Botswana branch
manager for MSC, said although
expectations were low for an increase
in volumes he was confident that
MSC Botswana could still survive
through these tough economic times
because of its commitment to remain
competitive.
The continued weak recovery
of the global economy, especially
contraction of the diamond market
in 2015, weakened the domestic
economic prospects of Botswana in
2016.
“However, the Botswana
government has launched the
Economic Stimulus Programme
(ESP) to aid diversification of the
economy away from the diamond
industry with the aim of improving
infrastructure and tourism,” said
Mcintyre.
“Our imports have also seen a
decline. The demand for a major
import – used cars – has decreased
considerably, simply because people
are not in a position to purchase
right now,” he said. According to
Mcintyre efforts are under way to
improve transit times and to shorten
the turnaround times of containers
to and from Botswana in an effort
to offer a cost-effective solution to
clients.
“We work very closely with
Transnet Freight Rail, Botswana
Railways and Gabcon terminal
to ensure that we are offering a
seamless solution to our clients at all
times.”
He said the collaborative approach
was proving to be extremely
beneficial and containers were now
moving by rail, with an improved
transit time from Durban to
Botswana.
“A big challenge is the surplus
of empty containers that add onto
intermodal costs. Faster export
growth is needed in order to propel
the containerised business,” said
Mcintyre.
Moves to speed up transit on Botswana route
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