CGECI ACADEMY 2023: ROUND TABLE ON INDUSTRY: THE MANAGING DIRECTOR OF THE ABIDJAN PORT AUTHORITY SHARES HIS EXPERTISE

Autres Friday 15 December 2023

On 26 October 2023, Mr. Hien Yacouba SIÉ, Managing Director of the Abidjan Port Authority (PAA), co-hosted a round table on the theme of "Industrial development as a catalyst for competitiveness in African economies" at the 11th CGECI Academy, chaired by HEM. Haile Mariam DESSALEGN, former Prime Minister of Ethiopia.

Along with the other panellists, namely Mr. Jean-Louis BILLON, CEO of SAPH, Mrs. Marie-Joséphine SIDIBÉ, Managing Director of SMB, Mr. Tidiane BOYE, UNIDO Resident Representative in Côte d'Ivoire and Mr. Antoine ANO, representing the French Minister of Industry and Commerce, the discussions focused on economic diversification, infrastructure and innovation, workforce training and job creation, sustainability and environmental impact, as well as Public-Private Partnerships (PPP).

In his speech, the Managing Director of the PAA began by congratulating the industrial operators, the real players in the port sector, for their resilience in the face of the various economic crises that Côte d'Ivoire has experienced, before outlining the impact of the port sector on industrial development in Côte d'Ivoire.

An essential link in the foreign trade and logistics chain, ports are the preferred transit points for industries, both for importing raw materials and for exporting their products to consumer areas. Given their capacity to act as a catalyst for industrial activity, they are powerful logistical barometers, gauged by any economic operator wishing to set up in a country.

However, for Mr. Hien SIÉ, the performance of port platforms requires prerequisites such as infrastructure, production factors, human capital and the measurement of their environmental impact.

To meet this need, and given the dilapidated state of Abidjan's port infrastructure, which no longer met international standards, in 2011 the State of Côte d'Ivoire authorised structural investments of around CFAF 1,200 billion, as part of the PPP, to build new, more suitable infrastructure. This is being done both to improve the reception of ships and to regulate the high level of congestion and provide a sustainable response to the lack of handling space in the port's bonded area.

A mole at the fishing terminal, the widening and deepening of the Vridi Canal, an additional 40 hectares of industrial land by filling in the Vridi-Biétry lagoon bay, a second container terminal, a Ro-Ro terminal, the modernisation of the ore terminal, the relining of the bulk terminal quays and the construction of a new grain terminal have all been completed.

As a result of these works, the Abidjan Port is now in a position to receive container ships carrying 14,000 TEU, and to significantly reduce the waiting time for ships, estimated at around 20 days in December 2022, compared with virtually zero today.

In addition to infrastructure, the Managing Director of the PAA also spoke about the other obstacles that need to be removed to further boost the competitiveness of the Abidjan Port, and enable it to effectively support Côte d'Ivoire's industrial development.

With regard to the administrative delays observed, dematerialisation was identified as a prerequisite for speeding up procedures for the passage of goods, which will ultimately reduce costs for operators.

As regards the transport of goods outside the port area, which represents a major logistical cost for manufacturers, the rehabilitation and reinforcement of the existing road network is a priority. To this end, several projects are underway and others are planned. These include the rehabilitation of the Vridi boulevard by the Millenium Challenge Account Côte d'Ivoire, the construction of a tunnel to cross the Vridi Canal (to facilitate access to the Abidjan Port's 2,300 hectares of land reserves on Boulay Island, with a view to creating an industrial free zone), an interchange providing access to the Vridi Canal tunnel, the Vridi toll plaza, the Port-Jacqueville motorway, the Zimbabwe-Boulevard de Marseille bridge, the Yopougon-Îles Boulay bridge and the Grand-Bassam Y4 expressway (Vridi-Port-Bouët).

However, none of this would be profitable without inclusive industrialisation, in which local operators will also have their place. Before concluding, the Managing Director of the PAA said, "Our SMEs need to be able to benefit from effective policies and have the support of the State for access to finance, so that they can become national champions, creating value to benefit the growth of our economy."