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\u2013 A vision for the future of maritime transport\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
![\"349548948_30dec54522_c\"](\"https:\/\/cameroun.yearbook-media.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/elementor\/thumbs\/349548948_30dec54522_c-r3cly720pkr99f75spyj19xa6etv0b2o683r5voecq.jpg\" "\\"349548948_30dec54522_c\\"")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\tWith 364 kilometers of coastline, the Cameroonian maritime sector is full of immense, still untapped potential, representing an important niche for employment and economic development.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t \t\t The development of a National Maritime Transport Policy (NMTP) consistent with the guidelines of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) should help provide the government with the necessary tools to become an effective player in the maritime transport sector and take full advantage of the potential of the blue economy. <\/p>\n The creation of a maritime arbitration center is also envisaged, which will be an impartial and effective mechanism for settling transnational commercial disputes. This heralds a real transformation of the maritime sector. <\/p>\n Cameroon has three seaports: the Autonomous Port of Douala, the Autonomous Port of Kribi (PAK), the Autonomous Port of Limbe (PAL).<\/p>\n The Autonomous Port of Douala (PAD)<\/b> alone represents 95% of Cameroonian maritime goods traffic. The port of Douala aims to be the reference hub in the heart of the Gulf of Guinea. It is the largest port in the CEMAC zone. The PAD confirms, in 2023, its position as Cameroon's leading port in terms of domestic traffic. It was ranked 1st in CEMAC in logistics performance in May 2023. The SDD aims to increase its capacity from nearly 13 million tonnes to 45 million by 2050, which amounts to tripling the current capacity. To achieve this, it is planned to first modernize and optimize the infrastructure of the Bonab\u00e9ri site and then expand the port to the new deep-water site of Manoka. The first phase is scheduled for completion in 2035 and is expected to increase the port's capacity to 23 million tonnes per year by 2030. The expansion project, which is expected to be completed in 2050, involves the construction of four container berths capable of handling the world's largest ships, a grain terminal, and two berths for bulk minerals and hydrocarbons. To accelerate the process, the PAD is increasing its efforts to attract investors.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t \t\t The Autonomous Port of Kribi (PAK)<\/b> \u2013 in deep water with its 16-meter draft \u2013 is intended to compensate for the nautical shortcomings of an estuary port like Douala. In 2022, only four years after the start of its commercial activities, the PAK has already seen nearly 1,600 ships transit, for a total traffic estimated at more than 33 million tons of various goods, mainly thanks to exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG). Initially planned to become the export port for iron ore extracted in the region, Kribi, thanks to energy and container traffic, plays the role of a major transshipment port with a sub-regional vocation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The second phase of the port's development is expected to begin in early 2024. Once completed, the KCT will see its annual capacity increase from 350,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) to over 1 million, while the KMT will be able to handle 4 million tonnes of cargo per year, compared to 1.2 million tonnes today.<\/p>\n A third phase is expected to follow, focusing on the establishment of terminals specializing in ro-ro, fruit, bulk, and ore carriers, not to mention offshore oil and gas projects. These are all activities that will benefit from the future rail connection on the section between Ed\u00e9a and Kribi. In February 2023, the PAK signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with four companies relating to the project to develop an integrated industrial zone covering an area of 1,500 hectares. With this investment estimated at $900 million, or 550.3 billion FCFA, the industrial zone being developed at the port of Kribi is expected to generate 50,000 direct jobs.<\/p>\n The Autonomous Port of Limbe (PAL) <\/b>complements the strategy of the State of Cameroon in its ports master plan. The construction of this deep-water port, with a projected cost of approximately 400 billion FCFA, will inaugurate an infrastructure specialized in the transport of heavy products such as hydrocarbons, due to its proximity to the National Refining Company (Sonara) and agricultural products. Indeed, the Southwest region is home to immense dessert banana plantations. It is also an important cocoa production basin in Cameroon. Construction work on the first phase of the Autonomous Port of Limbe is expected to begin in 2023.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t