Tanzania courts Uganda shippers with 30-days free storage period 

The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) has offered several incentives to Uganda shippers, among which is a 30–day free storage period for all imports.

The offer comes as global supply chains try to overcome the effects of Covid-19, conflicts such as that in Ukraine, and climate change. The announcement was made during the recent FIATA-RAME 2023 logistics conference, held in Kampala in the first week of August.

TPA said it would “support the shippers and logistics service providers in building resilience in their operations and to help them in adapting to the new trends and disruptions in international trade,” a statement from the conference noted.  

“Ports play a key role in facilitating trade and creating competitive markets and economies. TPA has a dedicated Ugandan shade, which is available for shippers to use at any given time as both a consolidation and deconsolidation center, especially for imports. Exports of up to 3,500 tonnes are also allowed in this shade for consolidation purposes,” said Yesaya Masangya, TPA’s marketing manager, who was speaking at the RAME conference, is quoted in a statement.

He added: “The 30 free days will give shippers a more realistic import planning and allow them comply with the requirements of various stakeholders. We hope that this will, to some degree, help users of Tanzania ports recover from the slump brought about by the 3Cs.”

Masangya noted that non-tarrif barriers (NTBs) remained the biggest trade concern across nations. TPA is mandated to provide a  seamless gateway to global economies as well as offer efficient cargo handling services. The core functions of the authority are combined with facilitation and partnerships in order to provide an efficient and reliable service.

The authority operates a system of ports that not only serve the Tanzania hinterland but also Uganda, DRC, Zambia, Rwanda, Burundi, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Uganda continues to explore different incentives to use the Tanzania route from its usual Kenyan route. Uganda continues to encourage shippers to increasingly consider the Tanzanian route, and limit its dependence on the Kenyan route.

A liaison office in Kampala – opened less than five years ago – to bring services closer, emphasizes Uganda’s position as a strategic transit market  for TPA. Uganda is served through a multimodal system, that is; the rail–to–lake–network from the port of Dar es Salaam to Portbell and Jinja through Mwanza on Lake Victoria.

The port of Dar es Salaam alone handles over 30 million tonnes of cargo per annum [general cargo – nine million tonnes; container yard – 11 million tonnes or 1,500,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs); liquid bulk – 10 million tonnes].

“We are always improving our services to ensure efficiency and reliability. Our ports are operating on a 24/7 basis with heightened security. The TPA Electronic Payment Portal (TEPP) – that accommodates both VISA and MasterCard – has also eased the transaction experience for shippers,” said Lona Stafford, TPA Uganda country representative.