The total cargo throughput at the port of Mombasa for the period between January to September 2020 stood at 22.3 million, a marginal decline by 491,537 metric tonnes compared to the same period in 2019 that registered a total throughput of 25.6 million MT.
This can be attributed partly to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic that has disrupted the global logistics supply chain.
Imports accounted for 82 per cent of the total throughput for the same period. This is an indication of unfavorable trade balance for the countries using the port of Mombasa.
Exports accounted for only 13 per cent share of total throughput for the period Jan-Sept 2020, transshipment 6 percent and restows 0.3 percent of the share of throughput.
The share of exports increased by 10 per cent in September 2020 compared to January 2020; an indication that import trade has been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic than export trade.
The port of Mombasa, recorded average ship turnaround time of 64 hours in August and 75 hours in September 2020 which is within the set target of 81 hours.
This is a reflection that the concerted efforts by stakeholders are bearing fruits.
“The positive performance could be attributed to the initiatives that have been implemented, including modernization of equipment and expansion of berth that has led to the improvement of this target,” Northern Corridor quarterly performance report by the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Coordination Authority (NCTTCA) said in its quarterly
This report is part of the series of quarterly reports prepared by the NCTTCA in furtherance of its mandate to monitor and report regularly on the performance of the Corridor. It covers the performance of Mombasa Port and Northern Corridor Charter indicators for the period of three months from July to September 2020.
The report also provides a comparison of performance for the similar quarter of previous years to understand and track improvements and challenges along the corridor.
Port productivity and efficiency are important for improved logistics environment that will support trade facilitation and competitiveness initiatives.
The Average Container Import Dwell Time at the Port has seen a steady improvement from 109 hours in July 2020 to 99 hours in September 2020.
However, a comparison with the same quarter in 2019 showed an increase in dwell time for the quarter of 2020. This was partly due to the measures put in place to curb the COVID-19 pandemic.
Further, data show that time taken at the port after customs release cargo worsened for the quarter of 2020 when compared to the same quarter of 2019. This could also be partly attributed to delays encountered by transporters to meet the COVID-19 health protocols.
Time for customs clearance at the Document Processing Center (DPC), and customs One Stop Centre Clearance Time posted a positive growth during the quarter ending September 2020
Transit time on most of the routes along the Northern Corridor worsened partly due to the border crossing challenges and driver testing requirement for the COVID-19.
In addition, COVID-19 containment measures including lockdowns, curfews, and social distancing measures slowed down processes contributing to high transit time. In the review period, drivers were experiencing a long stay at border points as they awaited clearance, with long queues of trucks reported at the Malaba border.
Data reveals an increase in the number of consignments plying the Taveta/Holili route through the northern corridor. A total of 941 trucks armed with the ECTS gadget were recorded for the quarter ending September 2020 on the Mombasa-Taveta route.
Weighbridge traffic reduced cumulatively by 19 percent in 2019 and further by 12 percent in 2020 for the period January to September.
Weighbridge traffic has reduced and this could partly be linked to the implementation of Standard Gauge Rail (SGR). Athi- River weighbridge recorded the highest traffic compared to other weighbridges on the corridor.
This is because the weighbridges handle traffic originating from/to the port of Mombasa both local and transit cargo and traffic originating from/to Namanga Border Point.
Further analysis on weighbridges compliance levels shows a steady of over 90 percent performance except for Busia weighbridge whose compliance level averaged 81 percent. Low compliance at the Busia weigh weighbridge could be attributed to the weighbridge implementation of every axle compliance while the rest of the weighbridges register group axle compliance.
