Container traffic through Kenya’s main Mombasa port, which also serves several other countries in East Africa, grew 24 percent in the first half of 2012, helped by improved cargo handling and a stabilizing global economy.
The traffic is usually an indicator of economic activity in the East Africa region.
According to ports managing director Gichiri Ndua the port handled 10.7 million tonnes of cargo over the first-half of the year, up from 9.3 million in the same period in 2011.
The MD through a report se4en by Reuters added that the growth in cargo volumes and hence the demand for services at the Port of Mombasa has grown progressively.
Apart from Kenya, the port of Mombasa handles cargo to and from Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, South Sudan, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia.
Kenya is building a $300 million second container terminal at Mombasa to handle increased trade within the region, driven by a sharp growth in construction, vast infrastructure development and an emerging middle class.
Kenya also plans to construct a second port in Lamu, north of Mombasa, with a capacity of 23 million tonnes per year.
AUTHOR: BEN GUMO
Facebook
Twitter
Google Plus
Rss
Email
StumbleUpon