•Total containers registered a 15.3 per cent increase to record 754,148 Total Equivalent Units in 2021, up from 654,054 TEUs registered in the same period in 2020.
•Trans-shipment traffic at the port grew by 55.9 per cent to record 125,141 TEUs compared to 80,278 TEUs last year.
The Port of Mombasa's performance is improving dramatically, as throughput increased by 11.8 per cent.
That percentage increase surpassed the target by 0.5 per cent, the Kenya Ports Authority announced.
For the first six months of 2021, Mombasa handled 18.333 million tonnes in cargo throughput against 16.394 million tonnes in the same period last year.
During the same period, total containers registered a 15.3 per cent increase to record 754,148 Total Equivalent Units (TEUs), up from 654,054 TEUs registered in a similar period last year.
KPA acting managing director John Mwangemi said they were working towards improving the efficiency and overall port performance.
He spoke on Monday when he received the second transhipment vessel, the MV Spirit of Dubai at the Lamu port.
Mwangemi said the trans-shipment traffic at the port of Mombasa grew by 55.9 per cent to record 125,141 TEUs compared to 80,278 TEUs last year.
However, during the period under review, there was a decline in terms of transit traffic, which dropped by 5.4 per cent and registered 4.73 million tonnes against 5 million tonnes last year.
The negative performance is attributed to the decreased handling of cargo for Uganda and Rwanda by 208,811 tonnes or 5.5 per cent and 119,702 tonnes or 57.4 per cent, respectively.
“The reduction in the regional economic activity is projected to continue into the next quarter of the year. However, we look forward to increased business volumes in the remaining half of the calendar year,” Mwangemi said.
For Uganda, this was attributed to the general elections, the resurgence of Covid-19 in the region and the resultant economic lockdowns in Uganda and Rwanda.
Mwangemi was officiating his first activity in his capacity as acting KPA managing director.
“We shall enhance collaboration with all our customers and stakeholders. We are therefore actively open to constructive views towards improving efficiency and overall trade performance in the region,” Mwangemi said.
The arrival on Monday of the MV Spirit of Dubai at Lamu port to pick transhipment cargo destined for Jeddah in Saudi Arabia was a milestone since the port went into operation on May 20.
“The dream of spearheading transhipment business has now become a reality at this port which was put into operation two months ago,” Mwangemi said.
Last week Thursday, Lamu received the first commercial ship MV Amu 1, owned by a local shipping company, Lamu Shipping Limited.
“Now,the arrival of MV Spirit of Dubai in less than a week, inspires confidence and helps raise the profile of the Port of Lamu on the global map,” he said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris