Stakeholders in Mombasa port have embarked on a campaign to urge the government to gazette commercial maritime service regulations that they hope will reduce the cost of doing business.
Some of the rules in the A-G's office are on shipping lines, ship agents and Container Freight Station, which are blamed for introducing numerous unjustified fees that have made Mombasa port un-competitive.
Stakeholders in Mombasa port have embarked on a campaign to urge the government to gazette commercial maritime service regulations that they hope will reduce the cost of doing business.
Some of the rules in the A-G's office are on shipping lines, ship agents and Container Freight Station, which are blamed for introducing numerous unjustified fees that have made Mombasa port un-competitive.
It is not clear whether the Ministry of Transport has submitted the rules to the A-G's office for scrutiny a year since they were submitted by the industry regulator Kenya Maritime Authority.
"The stakeholders have discussed the delays of in the past three meetings. We shall do it repeatedly until the government realises the value we attach to a properly regulated industry," a stakeholders who did not want to be named discussing the issue said.
The Merchant Shipping Act was enacted in 2009 to regulate maritime industry, but there is not even a single regulation that has been gazetted making KMA ineffective in addressing the issues of unjustifiable charges in the industry.
It is estimated that importers and consumers spend over $50 million (Sh3.8 billion) annually as a result of unfair practices by service providers.
Market analysts cite Mombasa as one of the most expensive, with logistical costs accounting for 42 per cent of the cost of insurance and freight.
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