African import surge

In 2025 the Sub-Saharan region of Africa imported 9.7 million TEU of containerized cargo. By 2050 this could increase to more than 32 million TEU.

There are two elements underlying this forward projection.

The first one is demographics. The African population is projected to grow from 1.5 Billion now to 2.5 Billion people in 2050.

This means one additional billion people who will need food, housing, clothes, furniture etc. Furthermore they will need jobs in growing industries. Industries which will need building material, industrial components and machinery.

All of this, and much more, are elements which to a large degree is moved in containers.

The second element is a growing economy. Presently Africa imports 6 TEU per 1000 people. In other words. 1000 people "share" a 20-foot container with imported goods per year. Contrast this to Europe which imports 46 TEU per 1000 people or North America which imports 77 TEU per 1000 people.

The average person in Africa might not reach European or North American levels as early as 2050. But what if we compare to for example South America where we see 16 TEU per 1000 people. What if the average African consumers by 2050 have arrived to just half of the level seen today in South America?

Well, under these projections it leads to a tripling of African container imports to 32 million TEU by 2050. This is almost as much as Europe imports today. But in Europe we have major port complexes such as Rotterdam, Antwerp, Felixstowe and Algeciras. Sub-saharan Africa does not have any ports near the magnitude needed. And neither do we presently see the hinterland infrastructure necessary to cater for a tripling of container volumes.

It is therefore clear that there are immense opportunities for transportation companies willing to invest and be part of building the logistical foundation for the sharp increase in African container volumes over the coming decades.

My Syncro Sally Voyage will shine a spotlight on these opportunities as seen from the ground of 41 African countries from mid-2026 to end-2027.

(Images below are from my trip in July 2024 travelling on the Iron Ore Train in Mauretania. It carriers iron ore from the mines in Zouerat 700 km inland in Sahara to the port in Nouadhibou on the Atlantic Coast.)