Africa – 18 March 2024
AFRICA
- The disruption to global trade caused by Houthi rebels targeting cargo ships in the Red Sea offers an opportunity for Africa. The windfall is largely passing it by. While the number of vessels sailing around the Cape of Good Hope has surged 85% since early December, merchant ships making the lengthy trip around the southern tip of the continent are finding it hard to find places to restock and refuel. South African ports such as Cape Town and Durban, large facilities that should in theory be first in line to capitalize on the trade, are congested and inefficient, and avoided if possible. Alternatives such as Walvis Bay in Namibia, Toamasina in Madagascar and Port Louis in Mauritius are benefiting, but their smaller size is a constraint. The number of vessels calling at Toamasina rose from 2 in October to 35 in January. None of those ports can be described as efficient. Cape Town and Durban are both in the bottom 10 of a World Bank assessment of 348 container ports. Port Louis isn’t much better, while Walvis Bay and Toamasina rank at 293 and 227 respectively. Ramping up capacity and improving efficiency will take time, yet it may well be worth the effort and investment. The current threat to traffic to and from the Suez Canal could dissipate if the Israel-Hamas war ends. Still, it’s not the first time the volatile region has been rocked by violence and it’s unlikely to be the last. (Source)
- Crime barriers between South Africa and Mozambique. Concrete barriers are currently being built along a stretch of the South Africa-Mozambique border to prevent people crossing over to steal and smuggle vehicles. South African authorities have budgeted close to $2.7 million to build the wall made up of three sections – an 8 km barrier near Tembe Elephant Park; an 8 km-long stretch near iSimangaliso Wetland Park; and a 9 km wall from the western boundary of Tembe Elephant Park towards Pongolo River. (Source)
- Nigeria backtracks on expat tax. Nigeria has paused a controversial annual levy that would require businesses employing expatriates to pay $15 000 for a director and $10 000 for other workers. President Bola Tinubu imposed the tax over a week ago, but it was met with widespread condemnation. The Ministry of Interior said the levy would be paused for dialogue among stakeholders. (Source)
