East Africa must urgently cut the cost and unpredictability of moving goods across the region, with high fuel expenses, border delays and fragmented logistics systems threatening trade competitiveness, industry players have warned.
The Shippers Council of Eastern Africa chief executive Agayo Ogambi said logistics costs had become a major constraint to businesses as traders contend with rising fuel expenses, road charges, vehicle operating costs, border delays and empty truck returns.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the East Africa CEO and Investment Forum 2026 in Nairobi, Ogambi said the region needed to shift its focus from building individual infrastructure projects to improving the performance of the entire trade corridor.
The two-day forum, held on September 17–18, brought together business leaders, investors, policymakers and development finance institutions to discuss ways of improving East Africa's trade and investment competitiveness.
Ogambi said fuel accounted for about 38 per cent of road transport costs in 2021, but the share had risen to approximately 55 per cent in 2026, putting additional pressure on the cost of transporting goods.
“The key challenge is not only infrastructure capacity, but the cost and unpredictability of moving cargo across the entire corridor,” Ogambi said.
He said the problem was particularly important for Kenya because the Port of Mombasa remains a major gateway for imports and exports serving the wider East African region.
The Northern Corridor, which connects Mombasa with Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, is one of the region's critical trade routes.
However, shippers continue to face delays along the corridor, increasing the time and cost required to move cargo from the port to inland destinations.
Ogambi cited July-September 2025 data showing that cargo movement between Mombasa and Kampala averaged about 111 hours, against a cited target of 72 hours.
The Mombasa-Malaba section averaged about 85 hours, compared with a cited target of 40 hours.
Such delays, he said, undermine the competitiveness of businesses that depend on predictable delivery schedules and increase costs that are ultimately passed through supply chains.
Customs and border procedures remain another major challenge, with traders facing repetitive documentation, inspections, permits and differing national requirements.
Ogambi called for greater harmonisation of customs and border processes, including wider use of pre-clearance, risk-based inspections, regional bonds and more efficient One-Stop Border Posts.
He also called for stronger integration of the infrastructure linking ports, roads, railways, inland container depots, logistics hubs and truck terminals.
“The region needs to plan infrastructure as an end-to-end trade corridor rather than as separate projects,” he said.
Under such an approach, performance would be measured from port to road or rail, inland logistics hubs and borders through to the final destination.
This would require governments and regional agencies to measure total logistics costs, door-to-door transit times, port and border dwell times, truck turnaround, rail utilisation and delivery.
Ogambi also identified fragmented digital systems as a major obstacle to efficient cargo movement.
He called for greater integration between customs, port, transport and cargo-tracking systems to enable real-time sharing of information across the supply chain.
He proposed a regional approach based on “one process, one data flow, one regional transit system”, under which countries would harmonise electronic data standards and customs systems.
The approach would also expand regional transit bonds, promote mutual recognition of controls and strengthen electronic cargo tracking and One-Stop Border Posts.
The Shippers Council further wants the region to establish common corridor performance indicators covering logistics costs, transit times, border delays, inspections and delivery reliability.
The efficiency of the Northern Corridor has wider implications because it faces competition from Tanzania's Central Corridor.
The approximately 1,700-kilometre Northern Corridor provides the main route from Mombasa to Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and eastern DRC.
The roughly 1,300-kilometre Central Corridor links the port of Dar es Salaam with Tanzania's landlocked neighbours, including Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and eastern DRC.
As businesses compare alternative routes, the efficiency and predictability of each corridor increasingly becomes a factor in determining where traders route their cargo.
The logistics debate comes as East African businesses push governments to move from regional integration commitments to implementation.
The EABC and EADB forum has placed trade facilitation, investment and competitiveness at the centre of discussions, with organisers seeking concrete investment partnerships and reforms to improve the regional business environment.
EABC executive director Ahmed Farah has said the measure of regional integration should be whether businesses can operate across borders more efficiently, predictably and at lower cost.
The EABC has also highlighted the need to eliminate non-tariff barriers, harmonise standards, reduce logistics costs and ensure that regional commitments are implemented consistently.
