Maritime Traffic across South African Ports
A new briefing offers insights into maritime traffic, emissions, and trade across South African ports, while discussing the implications and opportunities presented by the transition to green shipping. South African ports play a pivotal role in African maritime trade, serving as a gateway for regional commerce, particularly for landlocked Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. Maritime transport is a key contributor to South Africa’s economy. The Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) operates eight commercial ports that handle substantial cargo volumes, with the Port of Durban being the busiest as reflected in vessel tonnage. As the largest container terminal in sub-Saharan Africa, Durban handles approximately 60 per cent of the country's container traffic. Despite its strategic position, South Africa accounts for only one per cent of global seaborne trade, highlighting the potential for growth, provided that existing barriers such as a limited domestic fleet and port inefficiencies are addressed. As the global maritime sector strives towards defossilisation, South Africa’s maritime sector must pro-actively adapt to facilitate the transition.
Purpose of the briefing
The briefing examines aspects of the maritime sector in South African, in particular:
- vessel traffic
- shipping emissions
- freight dynamics
- policy implications
The brief concludes with eight recommendations on government collaboration, digitalisation, green infrastructure investments, multilateral agreements, trade diversification and capacity building.
