Comparative transportation cost analysis in East Africa : executive summary

Using data and information based on transport costs and issues from the two main seaports of Mombasa and Dar-es-Salaam, this study presents a comparative cost analysis (with emphasis on total transportation costs to the shipper) of in-country and intercountry transport costs for various transit (Kenya and Tanzania) and landlocked (Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi) countries. For the land-locked countries, the study identifies the current transit transportation routes and presents an analysis of the financial and economic costs associated with each route for different types of cargo. Because of the many food shortages that have occurred in East Africa, particular attention is given the need for timely transport of agricultural cargo. The study recommends that to make transit traffic more effective, and routes and modes more competitive, additional investment on the basis of both existing and projected traffic levels should be made within the framework of donor-support regional projects and coordinated at that level. This approach reinforces the broad-based nature of the problem, as well as the need for cost-sharing on an issue that will yield collective regional benefit if designed and implemented appropriately.