The supply chain in the country is finally stabilizing despite the pandemic shock Somalia’s supply chain is finally stabilizing despite the unpredicted shock created by the pandemic, the country has been making incremental economic improvement for the last decade after the establishment of a somewhat functional federal government in Mogadishu.
The economic growth momentum is continuing despite the new wave of challenges introduced by the COVID 19 pandemic.
Before the pandemic, the local economy was witnessing a momentous growth jointly contributed by the ever-improving security and the influx of the Somali diaspora. The latest World Bank Somalia Economic Update states that the local economy contracted by 0.4 percent in 2020, less severe than the 1.5 percent contraction projected at the onset of the global pandemic. Thesoftcontraction was evidently manifested by the supply chain industry that has immediately picked up from low levels to levels of pre-pandemic times. This industry was severely impacted at the initial stage of the pandemic due to the confusion created by the panic purchase felt across the country, however, the industry started showing signs of recovery within the first quarter of 2020 as businesses have adjusted to the new reality on the ground.
To the surprise of most key players of the industry. Mogadishu port witnessed an unprecedented volume of cargo shipment while the pandemic was wreaking havoc most of the world. The increased volume of cargo shipment was in fact partly contributed by the local footprint of some of the key players in the shipping industry such as Maersk,
MSC, CMA, and other vessels that ferry cargo between UAE and Somalia. The country’s biggest port Mogadishuapproximately processes 2,500 containers per month, and this is projected to continue in medium term. While acknowledging the positive recovery, there are still unprecedented pressures in the global supply chain, dramatic spikes in freight rates, significant price rises due to the shortage of containers across the globe and potential shifts in trade patterns due to trade tensions and in the quest for more resilience.
There is a new concern over the Omicron variant of COVID 19 exacerbating the pandemic-induced crisis of consumer demand with lockdowns returning to cities in the country. Even though the overall Industry impact from the price fluctuation and the persistent delays at destination shipping berths can be measured based on the bottlenecks that have hindered economic recovery as the rebound in trade has run into pandemic-induced logistical challenges, including shortages of equipment and containers coupled with less reliable services and congested ports and longer delays and dwell times. Furda clearance and forwarding company is one of the key facilitators in the supply chain in the country and has tripled its clearing output for its customers in Mogadishu.
Our customers have come to depend on our reliable services and our pride in making sure our customers receive their supply in a timely manner from the moment their cargo is discharged at the entry point.
Furda’s current market overview
As one of the leading companies in the clearance and forwarding in the country, we have been increasing our capacity in acquiring and processing customer cargo for the smooth and continuous operation of the inventory-based businesses, at Furda we believe in making sure our customers receive the supply on time is one of the most important contribution to sustaining the economic improvement that is ongoing.
We have been importing our customers ‘cargo and clearing them on major shipping lines and can confidently assess the performance our cargo based on the shipping lines we have used ever since the pandemic has started.
We have witnessed a unique systemic pattern on each of the major shipping lines that we have used to import the cargo, some of the patterns were quite challenging in the nature they occurred, and others were positive. We have noticed for the last one-year MSC has increased their arrival frequency at Mogadishu port, and it was the most appreciated by our customers.
Some of the major challenges we have experienced on behalf of our customers were the inconsistency of frequency of arrival of CMA, this particularly has put us in an awkward situation with our customers that have to get accustomed to our speedy service. In addition to the CMA delays in container discharges, Maersk shipping line has reduced their container free days from 14days to 10 days, this significant reduction in free days will surely cause most of the importers to incur significant demurrage charges that will negatively impact their bottom line come at the end of fiscal year.
Even though the country is in election season and there is a certain degree of uncertainty among the business community, however the moral of the community at large is rather positive, and hope the new president that may be elected come January 2022 will propagate policies that will be catalyst to the continuous recovery of the economy. The overall expectation of the market is to continue its upward trend in the medium term and our company is fully prepared to continue serving our customers with the excellence that we have always projected. The economic growth is also expected to maintain its momentous improvement as new businesses are getting established almost on weekly basis. ““furda where cargo inspires progress”
To learn more about Furda Clearance and Forwarding Company, please visit our website at https://furda.so/