Private sector steps in to upgrade port facilities

Ports across southern Africa are investing in additional onshore handling capacity, quaysides, berth depth and approach channels to compete for growing volumes of agricultural, mineral and energy-related bulk cargo. With politicians having realised that government officials are not good at running complex commercial enterprises, most of the development is being done through public-private partnerships or concessions. Tanzania has followed the Walvis Bay strategy of encouraging neighbouring land-linked countries to operate their own dry ports close to its harbour gateways. In March, the Central Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency (CCTTFA) signed a concession agreement for the development of a 45-hectare Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) dry port within the 502-hectare Kwala dry port complex, approximately 60 kilometres from the Port of Dar es Salaam. It is expected to significantly reduce congestion at the port and will also enhance cargo clearance efficiency and facilitate faster, more reliable transportation of goods to the eastern and southern regions of the DRC, according to a joint statement issued at the signing ceremony. Tanzania is also investing heavily in its rail infrastructure to move more bulk cargo. Mozambique is leveraging the investment in the Nacala corridor rail link from the Tete province through Malawi to Nacala. Built primarily as a coal corridor, it is being expanded to handle a range of agricultural and mineral commodities. In December 2025, ministers from Mozambique, Malawi, Zambia and the DRC signed an agreement to extend the Nacala railway by approximately 2 400 kilometres to Chipata in Zambia and then into the DRC. In July 2025, a 78 000-ton grain terminal capable of processing 600 tons an hour started operating in the port. Further expansion will be through the concessioning of the port, with the government issuing a tender in February. Feasibility studies are under way to expand the Port of Beira’s dry bulk handling capacity to seven million tons a year, and liquid bulk to three million tons. Transnet has identified Richards Bay as the country’s leading dry bulk and liquefied natural gas (LNG) gateway. In February, Transnet issued a request for qualification for a private-sector partner for the Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal to increase volumes from around 16.7 million tons a year to 26.9 million tons, with chrome and magnetite identified as key growth commodities. The long-stalled manganese bulk terminal at Ngqura is once again on the table, with Transnet inviting formal bids for an operator to handle around 16 million tons a year. It will require a major upgrade of the rail link from the Kalahari Basin in the Northern Cape Province. There is competition from Richards Bay and Lüderitz for the manganese volumes. In March 2026, Transnet issued a Request for Qualification (RFQ) to select a private sector partner for the Richards Bay Dry Bulk Terminal, targeting a capacity expansion from 18.5 to 26.9 million tons a year. The Namibian Ports Authority (Namport) has been investing in Lüderitz Bay’s bulk handling capacity and has plans for a new terminal at Angra Point. Namport’s proposed North Port at Walvis Bay includes a dry-bulk terminal of more than 100 million tons a year. ER