Kenya has signed a pact with Rwanda in an effort to get a grip on the Mombasa port business shared with the port of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) allows Kenya to open a Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) liaison office in Kigali as the competition for the transit market intensifies between the ports of Mombasa and Dar es Salaam.
The governments of Kenya and Rwanda last week signed an MOU to operationalise the KPA’s liaison office in Kigali, Rwanda.
The northern transport corridor, which starts from Mombasa port, and the central transport corridor from Dar es Salaam, Tanga, and Mtwara ports in Tanzania share Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo transit markets.
The signing ceremony was presided over by Kenya’s Principal Secretary of the State Department for Transport, Mr Mohamed Daghar, and Rwanda’s Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Infrastructure, Canoth Manishiwe, in Kigali.
Speaking during the ceremony, Mr Daghar described the agreement as a testament to the shared commitment to deepen regional integration and trade and enhance the two nations’ strategic roles within East Africa’s maritime and inland logistics corridors.
“The operationalisation of the Kigali office reflects the two nations’ determination to support seamless cargo movement and promote competitive trade across the region,” he noted.
Rwanda’s PS Manishimwe highlighted the critical role played by KPA in facilitating regional trade and supporting Rwandan businesses.
“The signing of this MOU is a positive step towards enhancing bilateral relations between our two countries,” he said.
He lauded the KPA for the Kigali liaison office, noting that it has made it easier and more cost-effective for the Rwanda customers to clear their cargo from the comfort of their homes.
KPA Ruto underscored the authority’s ongoing initiatives to streamline port operations, improve capacity, and enhance service delivery.
Rwanda remains one of the Port of Mombasa’s key transit markets. In the port performance report for the year 2025, the market grew by 22 percent, or 156,107 metric tonnes, in comparison to the previous year after recording 839,366 metric tonnes against 683,259 metric tonnes.
Kenya’s Deputy High Commissioner Mr Nasser Okoth, KPA Director Ms Beatrice Nyamoita, General Manager of Corporate Services Mr Edward Kamau, and Manager of Contracts and Conveyancing Mr Robert Warui, were among the officials present at the event.
