Kenya is poised to benefit from a new plan by China to consolidate several major logistics and development companies into one for better trade dealings with Africa.
The Global Silk Road (Chongqing) Hub Port International Supply Chain Ltd was launched in Chongqing, China last week.
The discussion featured exchanges on building an integrated platform for global commerce and logistics, all aimed at bolstering trade between China and Africa.
Shanghai Greenroad Warehousing and Logistics Group Co Ltd., Zhejiang Holley Global Industry Development Ltd, Chongqing Jiangjin Hub Port Industrial Park Operation Group Ltd., and New Land-Sea Corridor Operation Ltd are part of the conglomerate.
It would be the major shipping and logistics link between China and its African trade partners, with Congo taking the lead in the greater Eastern Africa region.
Congo receives a significant size of its imports through the Port of Mombasa, with traders preferring the Northern Corridor owing to the good road network.Others are hauled through the Dar es Salaam Port.
The main trade route in the East Africa region is the 1,700 kilometre-long Northern Corridor that runs between Mombasa (Kenya), Uganda Rwanda, Burundi and Eastern DRC. The 1,300 kilometre-long Central Corridor serves Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Eastern D.R. Congo, with an exit and entry point at the port of Dar-es-Salaam.
The two corridors facilitate export and import activities within the EAC region with a combination of rail, road and lake transportation networks. With the latest developments, Kenya will likely have an edge over Tanzania should the envisioned extension of Standard Gauge Railway to DRC sail through. Recently, the Kenyan government said it would explore private partnerships to realise the dream.
Togo, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, and Madagascar are also set to benefit from the joint logistics approach as per the deliberations at the meeting hosted by among others , China-Africa Business Council under the leadership of Xu Qun.
“The new entity aims to integrate various stages of the global supply chain and implement a comprehensive service platform linking global commerce and logistics,” a brief from the Chongqing meeting reads.
The meeting was held alongside the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor Economic Development Forum.
The conference, attended by envoys of the direct beneficiary African states in China, saw attendees agreeing on the need for a stable supply chain platform.
“In the context of an increasingly integrated global economy, the stability and efficiency of supply chains are crucial to national economic prosperity,” the forum resolved.
The council said the supply chain conference “not only generated fresh ideas for cooperation in the sector but also bolstered Chongqing’s and China’s influence in the global supply chain system.”
“Looking ahead, the China-Africa Business Council plans to implement President Xi Jinping’s connectivity partnership initiative, as outlined in his FOCAC Beijing Summit speech, to foster a comprehensive China-Africa interconnected network,” Qun said.
China aimed to use the forum to elucidate how African countries and China can harness the strategic advantages of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor. The conference focused on enhancing supply chain resilience and fostering global connectivity, the brief reads.
Themed “Build an Integrated Platform for Global Commerce and Logistics,” the event drew nearly 150 participants.
Attendees included government officials, academics, representatives from social organizations, industry leaders, and corporate delegates from regions such as Chongqing, Guizhou, Gansu, and Sichuan.
The deliberations bordered on
how to explore global supply chain
trends, collaboration opportunities,
and the synergistic growth of logistics, trade, and industry.
It also marked the launch of the
China-Africa Business Council’s
initiatives supporting the 13 provinces and two regions along China’s
New International Land-Sea Trade
Corridor
