Mtwara Port achieves milestone with cashew exports

Dar es Salaam. Mtwara Port has marked a significant achievement this season by successfully accommodating 28 ships carrying over 200,000 tonnes of cashews, demonstrating its growing role in Tanzania's export sector.

The port is poised for further growth with plans to enhance its capabilities for transporting all commercial crops, particularly cashews.

Upcoming improvements include the installation of new equipment, scheduled for the 2024/25 financial year, as part of the broader Mtwara Corridor Development Project.

This initiative aims at connecting the sea gateway with southern Tanzania, northern Mozambique, and parts of Malawi and Zambia.

In a statement to The Citizen yesterday, the Mtwara Port manager Ferdinand Nyathi said the development was in line with President Samia Suluhu Hassan's directive during her visit last September when she ordered that all cashew exports should be channeled through the port.

“We are committed to following our leaders' directives by upgrading our equipment and expanding our workforce. We invite stakeholders to continue utilizing this efficient and cost-effective port,” Nyathi said.

According to Nyathi, the port, which began operations in 2020 after a renovation costing approximately Sh157 billion, now can accommodate larger ships compared to before.

A high-tech gantry crane is set to be installed next month to further boost operational efficiency.

Looking ahead, the port management plans to convene with stakeholders later this month to strategize on optimizing the port for future crop transportation.

TPA’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations, Dr George Fasha, said that Mtwara Port remains a critical gateway for Tanzania, with ambitions to expand the number of berths from the current two to six in the near future.

In February, Nyathi revealed that Sh157.8 billion had been invested in constructing a new 300-meter-long berth capable of handling ships of up to 230 meters long.

The new berth features a water depth of 13 meters, accommodating bulk carriers of up to 650,000 deadweight tonnes (DWT), and includes a 75,807-square-meter yard for storing up to 8,600 twenty-foot containers annually.

With ongoing modernization, Mtwara Port handled 1.629 million metric tonnes of cargo in the 2022/23 fiscal year, a substantial increase from 106,170 metric tonnes in the 2018/19 fiscal year.

The port’s performance for the 2023/24 fiscal year remains promising, with 1.016 million metric tonnes processed in the first seven months alone.