Problems starting to dissipate

In a number of countries the problems are starting to dissipate to a degree in consultant Duncan Bonnett’s view. One of the big ones is import duties and customs regulations. “What is on paper is for guideline purposes only because what happens on the ground is very different from what is put on paper – and that goes for a lot of the regulatory environment whether it’s investment incentives or trade regulations,” says Bonnett. “If you send a container in, one week you might get hit with 20% duty plus additional taxes while the next week there may be an additional duty – it depends on who you know. “You need to ensure that your freight forwarder has a really good partner on the other side or that the importer is well connected. If you have a good partner it removes a lot of hassle in terms of documentation, standards and the like.” Another evergreen problem is port infrastructure, which is a global issue. “In Luanda they’re having to build a new port because they physically can’t deal with the volume of goods going in and out of the country – it’s not simply an issue of the port being badly managed, it simply cannot cope.” But the good news is that ports and airports are beginning to upgrade capacity and new technologies are slowly changing around the region, creating a positive environment for continued sustained growth.