IMPORTS bound for Central African Republic have reached such high volumes that they are blocking vital cocoa exports from Cameroon's main Port of Douala, a city of three million and the capital of the former German and French colony.
Cameroon is the world's sixth biggest cocoa grower and produced 209,905 tonnes of beans in the 2013/14 season, notes Reuters.
Shippers say the port is so full of containers it can take 90 days to clear shipments, Reuters reports, Another problem, is Cameroon lumber for export piling up adding to the congestion.
The port, also plagued by spill-over political violence from troubled neighbours that has killed thousands and displaced a million people, is the main gateway for goods in and out of the oil, cocoa, and timber-producing yet troubled landlocked neighbours of Central Africa Republic and Chad.
The problem at Douala International Terminal has deprived the cocoa industry of CFA400,000,000 (US$653,595) in revenue this year, said Omer Gatien Maledy, of the Inter-professional Cocoa and Coffee Board.
¡§About 74,000 tonnes of cocoa are blocked in Douala. The container park was full. Too much wood prevented the unloading or the embarkation of other goods,?said Mr Maledy.
"The cost of customs clearance practically doubled. So many economic operators delay shipping their goods," he said, referring to a government decision to increase duties.
A newly-built port and container terminal in Kirby about 200 kilometres (120 miles) further south, meant to decongest Douala, is not yet operational.
Douala is the 27th most expensive city in the world and the most expensive in Africa, overtaking Lagos, says Wikipedia. Douala is the first city in tropical Africa to have a piped natural gas supply presently serving only industrial customers.
PORTS
20 March 2015 - 20:19
Containers and lumber pile up to block Cameroon's vital cocoa export flow
IMPORTS bound for Central African Republic have reached such high volumes that they are blocking vital cocoa exports from Cameroon's main Port of Douala, a city of three million and the capital of the former German and French colony.
PORTS
20 March 2015 - 20:19
Containers and lumber pile up to block Cameroon's vital cocoa export flow
This news 6753 hits received.
These news may also interest you