The Study on Regional Freight Corridor Development Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Based on Port and Rail System in Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Infrastructure in West Africa Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Transport Infrastructure in West Africa 5.1 Introduction Through visits from February to April 2010 to Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Ghana, the efforts of these countries and their neighbors in the development of port facilities, railway facilities, and PPP infrastructure were assessed. This chapter summarizes the present situation and problem areas for development of interregional freight transport corridors based on ports and railways, through an assessment of infrastructure and operations, efforts to improve port procedures, and an evaluation of logistics facilities. 5.2 Present Situation of Regional Freight Transport Corridors in the Countries Visited Figure 5-1 illustrates regional freight corridors in West Africa with a focus on the countries visited, while Table 5-1 presents an overview of the corridors. Each corridor in the figure is coded by country.1 Figure 5-1 Regional Freight Corridors in the Countries Visited in West Africa (Ports and Railways) 1 In Chapter 7, some of the listed corridors were selected for the design of model programs. 5-1 The Study on Regional Freight Corridor Development Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Based on Port and Rail System in Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Infrastructure in West Africa Table 5-1 Overview of Transport Infrastructure of Regional Freight Transport Corridors in the Countries Visited in West Africa Corridor Port Railway Status Road Status S1/M1 Dakar – Bamako Dakar There is a railway The North Corridor is Corridor (Transrail), but it is old mainly assisted by the EU, while the South Corridor is assisted by JICA, the World Bank, and AfDB S2 Dakar – Dakar, Between Dakar – Saint- The EU has improved the Nouakchott Nouakchott Louis only (a section Saint-Louis – Rosso Corridor connecting to section Mauritania is planned) S3 Dakar – Conakry Dakar, Construction from Improvement plan with Corridor Conakry Tambacounda to Dabola AfDB assistance has been proposed by ECOWAS S4 Senagal – Gambia Dakar, Banjul, No existing line or plan Transport needs to detour –Guinea Bissau Bissau around inland Senegal or Corridor use waterway transport, as there is no road bridge across the Gambia River M2 Bamako – Abidjan Abidjan An existing line linking Relatively better Corridor Abidjan – condition than other Farkessédougou, and corridors, but needs some construction between improvement Ouangolodougou – Bougouni – Bamakois has been proposed by ECOWAS M3/B4 Bamako – No port Existing line between Under improvement by Ouagadougou Ouagadougou – Bobo- the EU and others, but Corridor Dioulasso; a feasibility there are undeveloped study is underway by sections around the UEMOA with assistance border from USTDA M4 Bamako – Gao – No port No existing line or plan Insufficient development, Niamey Corridor under improvement by the EU and others M5 Bamako – Nouakchott No existing line or plan High proportion of Nouakchott undeveloped sections Corridor (Road) M6 Bamako – Conakry Conakry Between Conakry – Improvement with the Corridor Kouroussa – Kankan assistance of the EU only M7 Kayes – Saint- Saint-Louis No existing line or plan Development of transport Louis Corridor network using river is planned B1 Ouagadougou – Abidjan Between Abidjan – Relatively better Abidjan– Niamey Ouagadougou only condition; under Corridor (rehabilitation is improvement with EU needed); a feasibility assistance study for an extension between Ouagadougou – Niamey is underway by ECOWAS. 5-2 The Study on Regional Freight Corridor Development Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Based on Port and Rail System in Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Infrastructure in West Africa Corridor Port Railway Status Road Status B2 Ouagadougou – Cotonou A feasibility study for Relatively better Niamey – Cotonou an extension between condition in South Corridor Ouagadougou – Niamey Corridor from is underway by Ouagadougou to Niamey; ECOWAS. under improvement in A feasibility study for North Corridor construction between Parakou – Niamey has been conducted with assistance from UEMOA B3 Ouagadougou – No port The line from Under improvement Kaya – Dori – Ouagadougou to Kaya Tambao Corridor needs rehabilitation; construction is needed between Kaya – Dori – Tambao. B5/G1 Ouagadougou – Tema, A feasibility study has Some improvement, but Kumasi – Tema Takoradi been conducted for deterioration in some (Takoradi) extension to parts Corridor Ouagadougou via western Ghana, but there is no clear project plan; a feasibility study for urgent rehabilitation between Takoradi – Kumasi is underway with assistance from the EU and others B6 Ouagadougou – Lome Between Lome – Blitta Some improvement from Lome Corridor only Ouagadougou to the (low priority) border with Togo, but conditions in Togo are relatively worse G2 Tema – Yendi – Tema No existing line and Bridge construction and Ouagadougou/ plan road improvement are Niamey Corridor needed (assisted by the World Bank, the EU, and ECOWAS) G3 Abidjan – Accra – Abidjan, Existing line around Some improvement Lome – Cotonou – Takoradi, Accra and Takoradi; the (relatively better Lagos Corridor Tema, Lome, gauges are different in conditions near border Cotonou, each country, but are to areas) Lagos be unified to standard gauge for new construction The following sections summarize situations of the port and railway infrastructure in West Africa based on study results from the countries visited. 5-3 The Study on Regional Freight Corridor Development Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Based on Port and Rail System in Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Infrastructure in West Africa 5.3 Present Situation of Port Infrastructure 5.3.1 Overview of Port Infrastructure (1) Infrastructure Facilities The volume of freight handled in West African ports has increased, reflecting economic growth in West Africa. In particular, the ports of Dakar, Conakry, Abidjan, Takoradi, Tema, Lome, and Cotonou have increased the volume of container cargo handled so rapidly that port congestion has become a serious issue, with long wait times for berths; therefore, the establishment of facilities to meet current and forecast demand is required. While large-scale cranes and wide yards are necessary for the handling of container cargo, the layout of existing ports has been designed for conventional cargo handling with the use of ship’s gear or cranes with small lifting capacity in port terminals. Sheds and other facilities are usually located near their quays. Many of the ports in West Africa were developed during the colonial era and some of them were expanded in a makeshift manner, resulting in the need now for drastic measures. West African port facilities were reconstructed to respond to the rapid increase in container cargo volumes, particularly at Dakar, Abidjan, Takoradi, Lome, Cotonou, and Apapa. However, many of those ports did not secure sufficient container storage space, resulting in a failure to achieve efficient yard operations. Among these ports, Abidjan and Tema have successfully improved the efficiency of their yard operations through the introduction of rubber tired gantry cranes (RTGCs) and the construction of inland container depots (ICDS). The size of container vessels for container sea transport has become increasingly larger and ports at which such vessels can call require sufficient depth for navigation channels and quays. However, as shown in Table 5-2, the port entrances of a number of West African ports are relatively shallow. Except for the Port of Tema, which has a 16 m deep port entrance and 12.5 m deep container terminal quay, and the Port of Lome, which has a 12 m deep container terminal quay, most West African ports cannot accommodate large container vessels because they have only about 11 m deep entrance channels and 10 m deep quays for container vessels. Table 5-2 Overview of Major West African Port Facilities Capacity Depth Container Cargo General Entrance Container (1,000 Cargo Depth Berth Depth Gantry Port TEU/year) (1,000 t/year) (m) (m) Crane Dakar (Senegal) 400 N/A 11 11.5 – Conakry (Guinea) N/A N/A 9.5 10.5 N/A Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire) 600 N/A 10.4 11.5–12.5 4 Takoradi (Ghana) – 6,000 11.5 8–9.5 – Tema (Ghana) 400 9,000 12.5 11 3 Lome (Togo) 300 N/A 16 11–12 N/A Cotonou (Benin) 400 2,500 12 10–11 – Durban (South Africa) 1,600 N/A 12.8 12.8 9 Djibouti (Djibouti) 350 10,000 11.5 9.5–12 4 Source: Compiled from various sources Because of the anticipated increase in demand for container cargo, West African ports have been planning port improvement and expansion projects, with a particular focus on the construction of modern container terminals. The ports of Dakar, Conakry, Lome, and Cotonou have already incorporated the construction of new container terminals into their concession agreements. In 5-4 The Study on Regional Freight Corridor Development Chapter 5 Present Situation of Interregional Freight Based on Port and Rail System in Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Infrastructure in West Africa Côte d’Ivoire, the port authorities have commenced large-scale expansion of the port, while Nigeria plans to construct a new port to substitute for the Port of Lagos. Many West African ports were developed as export ports for mineral resources, agricultural products, and other such products. These port facilities include warehouses handling mineral resources and agricultural products. Subsequently, railways were constructed for the transport of mineral materials and agricultural products to/from the inland areas. The ports of Dakar, Conakry, Abidjan, Takoradi, Lome, and Cotonou are all linked with railway networks. However, large-sized bulk carriers cannot enter the ports due to their shallow water depth, which has resulted in a gradual deterioration of the ports’ competitiveness. To address this issue, navigation channels and quays need to be deepened. The ports of Dakar, Abidjan, Lome, and Cotonou have cargo yards used exclusively by the inland countries, and the ports of Takoradi and Tema have such yards outside their port premises.