PMAWCA 43rd Council: Youssef Imghi chairs the session on ports and the AfCFTA

The 43rd Annual Council of the Port Management Association of West and Central Africa (PMAWCA / AGPAOC) met in Lagos, hosted by the Nigerian Ports Authority. Youssef Imghi chaired Session III, on the opportunities for economic and logistical development opened by the African Continental Free Trade Area.

Four port authorities set out where they stand: Martin Boguikouma, Director General of OPRAG in Gabon; Mohammed Bello Koko, Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority; Derman Razak for the Port of Lomé; and Patrick Mpila for the Port Authority of Kribi.

What each port is building

Nigeria reported 1.3 billion US dollars allocated to the rehabilitation of port infrastructure, with quay capacity to be increased, draught taken from 7 to 13 metres, and rail connections extended to every seaport. Lomé is rehabilitating its mineral quays and building a dry port. Kribi is advancing its digitalisation. Gabon is reforming the legal and administrative frameworks that govern trade facilitation.

Across the region, port community systems and integrated management systems were reported as the practical route to simplifying procedures at the interface.

Where the session landed

• Customs charges need to balance competition between ports against the priorities of regional integration
• Closer coordination is required between port authorities and customs administrations
• National AfCFTA representatives should strengthen their ties with trade ministries

The conclusions landed somewhere the capital programmes cannot reach by themselves. A free trade area is only as usable as the procedures at its borders and quays, and those get fixed by administrations agreeing with each other rather than by construction.