Dar Es Salaam Port Steps Up as Regional Trade Gateway as Cargo Volumes Hit Record

Dar Es Salaam — Dar es Salaam Port is handling ships faster even as cargo volumes reach record levels, strengthening Tanzania’s position as a key Indian Ocean gateway for trade into Central, Eastern and Southern Africa.

The port ranked 255th globally in the World Bank’s 2025 Container Port Performance Index (CPPI), with a score of -7.75, a significant improvement from its standardised score of -176 in 2021.

The CPPI measures the efficiency with which container vessels move through ports, taking into account vessel size and cargo volumes. While it does not capture the full cost of moving goods through customs, roads, railways or borders, it provides a comparable measure of maritime-port performance.

More recent operating data point to further gains.

DP World said in July 2026 that discharge times for comparable cargo at its Dar es Salaam operation had fallen by more than 90%, from more than 300 hours to less than 28 hours since it began operations in April 2024.

The improvement comes as the port handles substantially more cargo.

The Tanzania Ports Authority (TPA) said Dar es Salaam handled a record 33.7 million tonnes during the 2025/26 financial year, up from 27.7 million tonnes a year earlier and 23.7 million tonnes in 2023/24.

A gateway beyond Tanzania

Dar es Salaam’s growing importance increasingly reflects its role in serving landlocked economies across the region.

The Democratic Republic of Congo accounted for 5.995 million tonnes of cargo through the port in 2024/25, representing 47% of transit traffic handled for neighbouring countries.

Zambia followed with 3.51 million tonnes, while Rwanda accounted for 1.72 million tonnes. Malawi and Burundi contributed 675,200 tonnes and 425,774 tonnes respectively.

The figures underline the importance of Dar es Salaam to supply chains stretching from the Indian Ocean to the Great Lakes and the Central African Copperbelt.

Copper, cobalt, agricultural commodities, machinery, fuel and manufactured goods move through transport corridors linking the port with some of Africa’s most important mining, production and consumer markets.

Investment expands port capacity

The physical infrastructure at Dar es Salaam has also undergone major changes.

The Dar es Salaam Maritime Gateway Project included the reconstruction and deepening of berths, widening and deepening of the entrance channel and expansion of the turning basin, enabling larger vessels to access the harbour more efficiently.

Private investment has accompanied the public infrastructure upgrades.

DP World and Tanzania East Africa Gateway Terminal Limited have invested in cargo-handling equipment, storage yards, information systems and other infrastructure aimed at increasing the port’s freight-handling capacity.

The operational gains are now being tested by rapidly rising demand.

TPA said during a recent marketing mission in Lubumbashi that cargo from the DRC increased by 43%, rising from 4.1 million tonnes in 2023/24 to 5.9 million tonnes in 2024/25.

The authority also said average handling time for container vessels had fallen to around three days.

The inland corridor test

For landlocked economies, however, port efficiency is only one part of the trade equation.

The real measure of a corridor is how quickly and cheaply goods can move from the coast to mines, factories, farms and consumer markets hundreds or thousands of kilometres inland.

Tanzania is therefore investing beyond the waterfront, including in railways, dry ports and freight facilities designed to move rising cargo volumes from Dar es Salaam towards neighbouring markets.

Those inland connections will face increasing pressure as the port handles more freight.

Faster vessel turnaround can create additional capacity and improve shipping reliability, but those gains can be eroded if cargo encounters delays on railways, roads or at border crossings.

Competition for Africa's trade corridors

Dar es Salaam's performance comes as African countries compete to attract transit cargo through alternative routes to the Indian and Atlantic oceans.

Ports that can combine efficient vessel handling with dependable inland transport are likely to be best positioned to capture a growing share of regional trade.

For Tanzania, the latest figures suggest that improvements at Dar es Salaam are beginning to translate into greater capacity at one of East and Central Africa’s most important maritime gateways.

The next challenge will be maintaining faster vessel turnaround while moving record cargo volumes deeper into the Great Lakes region and the Copperbelt.

Source:World Bank Dar es Salaam Maritime Gateway Project

Reporting:Jasper A. Kwayu

Why it matters

Dar es Salaam is becoming more than a Tanzanian port. Its rising transit volumes show that its performance increasingly affects the cost, speed and reliability of trade for landlocked economies such as the DRC, Zambia, Rwanda, Malawi and Burundi.

If Tanzania can match faster port operations with reliable rail, road and border connections, Dar es Salaam could strengthen its position as a major trade corridor linking the Indian Ocean with some of Africa’s fastest-growing mining, manufacturing and consumer markets.

For businesses, the significance is straightforward: shorter port delays can reduce logistics bottlenecks, improve supply-chain reliability and make regional trade more competitive.