Freight forwarders operating across southern Africa are positive that cross-border volumes will increase despite the current challenging environment.Koen Rombouts, Bolloré Logistics’ managing director for southern African cluster, said with fewer projects on the go volumes had taken a dip, but considering the global move to electric vehicles and the abundance of much-needed resources in southern Africa, including cobalt and copper, it was all about overcoming the challenge.“I am very optimistic for the long term as I can see the potential and opportunities. It is, however, not going to be easy as the region has been hit hard by the Covid pandemic.”A decline in projects due to a more cautionary approach to the market has resulted in less cargo destined for the hinterland.“This will be the most immediate challenge this year – balancing north- and southbound cargo f lows,” said Rombouts. “Mining production continues inland, but we have far less cargo moving into the region due to several projects either being delayed or put on long-term hold – and so we don’t have enough trucks to bring cargo down to the ports.”He said the situation on the ground was not easy and the pressure was on to keep rates competitive while meeting client expectations.“Despite these challenges we still see a lot of opportunity in this region and expect projects and investments to pick up – and that will result in higher volumes. There is a major increase in demand around the world which is increasingly moving towards electric and more environmentally friendly solutions. These minerals are all found in abundance in southern Africa.”Rombouts told Freight News that investment in the Copperbelt was expected to continue for years to come and the company was upping capacity in line with this.“We continue to expand our footprint in the region, making sure we have the necessary capacity to meet current and future demand. We have invested in a new warehouse in Durban, which remains an important port for cross-border cargo, as well as a new warehouse in Kolwezi in the DRC. There is also investment going into warehouses in Beira in Mozambique.”He said the company was involved in discussions around railway solutions in Zambia and Angola as it firmly believed that there needed to be more cargo on rail in southern Africa. “Rail is not only the more environmentally friendly solution, but it makes sense to move more cargo to rail – especially in the mining sector. We have quite a big set-up in Chingola and would like to see more cargo from there moving to the ports on rail.”Commenting on the impact of Covid-19 on operations, Rombouts said it was challenging dealing with the various regulations and requirements of different countries. “Covid-19 highlighted the importance of regional integration and cooperation,” he said. “This was especially clear during the first few months of the pandemic where certain corridors came to a near standstill while on others there was still some activity – all based on how countries were dealing with the virus outbreak and what lockdowns were being instituted.”The approach at border posts was also very different from country to country which, in turn, also affected the forwarding industry.“Regional integration is something that must be addressed if we want to reduce the logistical challenges and improve supply chain efficiency,” said Rombouts.He said the pandemic had highlighted the importance of logistics operators being agile and f lexible in their approach to moving cargo.The most immediate challenge this year will be balancing north- and southbound cargo flows.– Koen Rombouts
