According to the Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem Project, which is an organisation helping countries adjacent to the Guinea Current Ecosystem to achieve environmental sustainability, illegal fishing is pushing fishermen out of work.
Information sourced from the Interim Guinea Current Commission indicates that the “incursion of trawlers into the Inshore Exclusive Zone’ has had a major impact on the exploitation of fisheries resources.
Sierra Leone, which is also a member of the New Guinea Current Large Marine Ecosystem (GCLME) has reported that it is experiencing fishing problems because of over-fishing, pollution and illegal fishing.
Maersk Donates 300 Containers To African Charity
Danish shipping giant Maersk Line has donated 300 containers to an African charity, Advance Aid, which will be used to store emergency medical equipment at strategic locations across Africa.
With an estimated value of US$ 500,000 the containers will increase the preparedness of UK-registered charity Advance Aid in pre-positioning emergency kits across Africa, close to potential disaster areas and in advance of any humanitarian crisis.
The kits consist of non-food items, such as shelters, hygiene kits, blankets etc, and are designed to house a family of five people who have been displaced. When all the kits are fully in place in three years’ time, Advance Aid will be able to reach 450,000 people in 30 countries within 24 hours of the onset of an emergency.
“This is a fantastically generous gift on the part of Maersk, this is a key piece in the jigsaw that we are putting together,” said David Dickie, chief executive of Advance Aid. “We are aiming to build a stockpile of 90,000 emergency kits in strategically located warehouses across Africa and this gift will give us storage space for all of these kits.” The kits also provide significant employment to African companies as the contents of the kits are all manufactured locally.
Within the next few weeks, the first containers will arrive in Mombasa, Kenya, to reach the first of three regions: East Africa (Nairobi/Mombasa/Kampala), followed by Southern Africa (Durban/Johannesburg/Maputo), and West Africa (Accra).
"Maersk Line is happy to support a cause that not only provides jobs for Africa, but also helps to ensure timely relief when a disaster hits. As a company with a large market presence in Africa, Maersk Line is strongly committed to future development of the African continent," commented Søren Toft, VP of Maersk Line Operations.
Rise In Imports Strains Mombasa Port
Cargo traffic through Mombasa port is projected to increase by 15 per cent this year, latest figures show, straining its capacity which has led to the suspension of trans-shipment business.
While increased cargo traffic is an indicator of growing trade in the country and in the region, the government has been slow in expanding and modernising the port. The port’s chief operations manager Joseph Atonga said increased throughput had forced the management to reject cargo trans-shipment.
Trans-shipment is the movement of goods or container to an intermediate destination, and then to another destination.
"We have been forced to reject trans-shipment because of inadequate berths at the port. Transhipment is the major activity for ports in Singapore and we are losing on this business," he said.
He said there is a noted rise in import of clinker, a key component in cement manufacturing, and steel, attributed to the booming construction industry.
"In the last two weeks there has been imports of between 400,000 and 500,000 tonnes of clinker for Uganda and Kenya," he said.
Other increases in imports this year are fertilisers and motor vehicles, while imported grains have declined compared to last year, when the country faced food shortages. The total cargo traffic is expected to rise to 700,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (Teus) this year, an improvement from 618,816 Teus last year.
The cargo traffic between January and October has reached 574,000 teus compared to 509,000 in the same period last year.
"The port has serious capacity constraints in terms of inadequate berths. This leads to slightly longer vessel waiting time during the peak season, hence threat of vessels delay surcharge (VDS) by shipping lines," said Mr Atonga.
With Rift Valley Railways still putting its house in order, most of the cargo is transported by road, slowing down the cargo movement. Rapid expansion of economic activities has seen countries in the region grow by an average of 5 per cent, hence increased volume of imports and exports that have piled pressure on the port.
Mombasa port serves Uganda, with a bulk uptake of 80 per cent of imports, Rwanda 5 per cent, Northern Tanzania 5 per cent, Sudan 3 per cent, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo 5.8 per cent as well as Burundi and Ethiopia with less than 1 per cent each.
According to Kenya Maritime Authority director general, Mrs Nancy Kirigithu, eight more shipping lines are about to enter, with one application still pending.
"There is an increased interest in shipping which has been expensive for a long time. We hope this will bring down the costs and improve the services," she said.
Ms Kirigithu said it costs an average of $1,500 (Sh120,000) per container delayed at the port, hence contributing to higher cost of goods in the market.
With the entry of new shipping lines, Mr Atonga said there’s pressure to upgrade and expand facilities on schedule.
The port introduced the 24-hour working model to ease congestion, but Mr Atonga said vessels have increased in numbers and sizes. The government is undertaking multi-billion projects jointly with donors to ease congestion and offer an alternative gateway to Mombasa port.
The projects include extension of the current container terminal that will cost Sh3.4 billion. Dredging of Mombasa port to accommodate larger vessels, whose tenders have been awarded for $62 million (Sh 5 billion) will commence in February and is expected to be completed in three years.
The government has so far committed Sh1.44 billion to the project.
Others are development of new terminal with 1.2 million Teus, whose tender is going on, with phase one scheduled to be completed in 2015. The government is also seeking to develop 3000-acre free port at Dongo Kundu through public-private partnerships and has already signed a technical support agreement with Singapore.
These projects, together with the second port to be constructed in Lamu, are expected to ease congestion at Mombasa port and offer alternative gateways in case of calamity, apart from serving emerging markets in Southern Sudan and Somalia.
SHORT TAKES
…..MOL opens Ivory Coast office
Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) has opened its own office in Abidjan in Cote d’Ivoire and says this is an indication of MOL’s growing commitment to the African continent.
“We believe that there is huge potential for growth, especially in West Africa,” said Jochen Veldman, Area Director for MOL.
MOL already has offices and agents in various parts of Africa, with a wide range of shipping services connecting the continent with the rest of the world.
……Angola targets 5 million tonnes a year for its ports
Angolan deputy transport minister José João Kuvingua says that by 2015 Angola’s three ports of Luanda, Lobito and Namibe will have increased to over five million tonnes of cargo. He was speaking last week at the meeting of Ports of the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP) and said that a market related study showed this figure to be feasible.
……Abidjan Port VTMS Upgrade Contract
The Abidjan Port Authority has signed a contract with Transas Mediterranean to upgrade the port’s existing VTMS system and to supply a multi-purpose simulator facility, or Port Training Centre.
The contract involves Transas upgrading the port of Abidjan’s VTMS system and to provide the facility for an extensive training programme. The package will enable training that is fully compliant with IMO and STCW’95 requirements.
The new simulator will be installed at the Abidjan Marine University (ARTSM) and apart from helping with the training of new recruits will enable existing marine pilots to undergo refresher courses aimed at honing their pilot skills.
……CMA CGM Raises Rates Ex- Asian Rates
The French liner company CMA CGM has announced an increase of rates on a number of trades from Asia, all taking effect from 1 January 2011.
1] From Asia to all ports in Europe, US$ 250 per TEU.
2] To South America and the West Coast of Central America, $ 400 per TEU.
3] To Panama and the Caribbean (except for the French West Indies and Guyana), $ 280 per 20-foot container and $ 400 per 40-footer.
4] To West Africa, as part of CMA CGM’s involvement in the Asia-West Africa Trade Agreement, $ 250 per TEU. (The line will also implement an AWATA-recommended $ 200 peak season surcharge from 10 January through 1 February.)
CMA CGM will also hike rates by $ 100 from West Africa to the Far East, Middle East and India.
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