“The port of Walvis Bay is among the most efficient port in Africa, maintaining high safety and security standards with shorter turnaround times between Zambia and Namibia,” states the WBCG’s Zambia Business Development Manager, James Kaposa.
Kaposa shared this point with ministry of agriculture officials during a meeting they held recently to discuss the benefits of procuring fertilizers destined for southern and western Zambia via the port of Walvis Bay. This came after the Zambian government announced that it had awarded a tender to private companies to procure 256,000 metric tons of fertilizer under the farmer input support program for the 2022/2023 farming season.
Kaposa highlighted that the WBCG would like to collaborate with the Zambian government agencies to ensure that goods are procured at the right price and delivered within reasonable time frame.
“The WBCG believes that the government will save some money because the landed cost for the commodity will be lower, due to the fact that the transportation distance will shorter which should translate into the cost of the fertilizer per ton to be relatively lower.
“Due to the port of Walvis Bay’s geographical proximity to the aforementioned Zambian regions, it should automatically translate into lower transportation costs for the commodity due to shorter land lag, which is a major factor in the final consumer price at which the commodity may be offloaded to the framers in those parts of the country,” further stated Kaposa adding that due to its proximity, it will be a good strategic initiative for the ministry to align procurements of goods meant for all the districts in southern and western regions via the port of Walvis Bay.
“Therefore, we are inviting the Zambian government and its procuring agents of fertilizers to consider importing fertilizers meant for the aforementioned regions via the Namibian port, as delivery times will be shorter and prices will be lower compared to the same commodities arriving via ports that are further away from the districts in the southern and western provinces,” Kaposa stated.