Félix Tshisekedi laid the foundation stone for the construction of the first deep-water port in the DRC. Banana’s deep water port will connect the country to global trade lanes and reduce dependence on neighboring countries.
With our correspondent in Kinshasa, Patient Ligodi
Semi-landlocked, Congo-Kinshasa has only 37 km of frontage on the Atlantic Ocean. In addition, the state of the maritime reach in this facade does not allow these large ships to access the port of Matadi or that of Boma.
Once completed, this port will therefore be a new gateway to the African continent, hope the Congolese authorities. By increasing the DRC’s export capacities, it aims to provide the country with access to international markets.
The first phase of the project involves the construction of a 600 meter quay and a 25 hectare storage platform. This will have an annual capacity of more than 300,000 containers, or more than 1.3 million tonnes of goods.
Construction is expected to take three years and be completed in 2025. It is being carried out by DP World, a United Arab Emirates company, at a cost of just over $1 billion. DP World will not only be responsible for the construction of the port, but also of the associated industrial zones.
It has signed an agreement with the State providing for the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance of the port as well as the provision of other services. The duration of the concession is initially set at 30 years and is limited to container traffic.
For the launch of this project, delegates from the government of the United Arab Emirates made the trip alongside the leaders of DP World.
With this port, the DRC is positioning itself more as a major partner of the Emirates in Africa. In 2021, the total value of trade between the two countries was more than $1.4 billion, excluding petroleum products. This represents an increase of 34% compared to 2020 and 22% compared to 2019.
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