Inside Africa's smart logistics transformation

Africa's digitalisation journey began in the early 2000s with the introduction of e-customs systems, customs modernisation initiatives, and early experiments with single-window platforms. Over the years, the continent has steadily advanced from digitising ports and border procedures to implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and its Digital Trade Protocol.

For logistics providers, this transformation has significantly reduced transportation and operational costs across supply chains, shortened border clearance and documentation processing times, and improved the efficiency of cross-border cargo movement. These digital advancements have also strengthened intra-African trade by making the movement of goods faster, more transparent, and more predictable across the continent.

Egidio Monteiro, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding, Sub-Saharan Africa, said, “For us, smart logistics is really about ensuring better visibility and being able to make decisions earlier.”

According to him, smart logistics plays a crucial role in reducing costs by minimising last-minute decision-making, reducing waiting times, and preventing unnecessary disruptions. It also provides customers with greater predictability across the supply chain, a key factor in improving cost efficiency in markets such as Kenya, Nigeria, and Rwanda.

However, in many cases, the bigger challenges are congestion, border delays, poor road conditions, capacity constraints, and the lack of timely visibility into disruptions before they escalate. According to estimates by the African Development Bank, Africa requires around $170 billion in annual infrastructure investment but faces a financing gap of up to $108 billion.

Investment in port infrastructure has emerged as a key enabler of more efficient trade across Africa. Among the major contributors, DP World has committed $250 million over five years in Dar es Salaam towards upgrading port infrastructure. According to the information shared by William Sears, Chief Commercial Officer, Logistics Africa at DP World, since the operations began in 2024, cargo discharge times for comparable shipments have fallen by more than 90%, from over 300 hours to less than 28 hours, while vessel productivity has increased from 10 to 20 moves per hour.

“Yes, smart logistics can reduce clearance times. But the biggest impact comes when technology is combined with the right processes on the ground.”

Egidio Monteiro, DHL Global Forwarding, Sub-Saharan Africa

The enhanced infrastructure has also enabled the port to handle larger vessels, including the 240-metre M/V RAMHAN, the largest ship to call at Dar es Salaam, which discharged 779 heavy-duty vehicles in just over 27 hours.

Sears said, “In Dakar, our integrated terminal operations, digital billing and end-to-end logistics services are helping customers reduce time and cost across cargo handling, clearance and retrieval.” The terminal operates 24/7.

The company is integrating AI, automation and real-time visibility tools across its logistics operations to help customers lower costs, improve supply chain resilience and respond more quickly to disruptions. “Our digital ecosystem combines CARGOES Flow for end-to-end shipment visibility, CARGOES TMS for AI-driven transport optimisation, and the ZODIAC Terminal Operating System, which uses AI and automation to improve terminal planning, equipment utilisation and operational efficiency,” commented Sears.

Predictive analytics is significantly changing how businesses maintain inventory. It helps in customer planning more confidently, in Monteiro’s opinion. He said, “In many African supply chains, companies hold extra stock because they are planning for uncertainty. If they are not sure when goods will arrive, they increase buffer stock.”

He believes better visibility into lead times, corridor performance and potential disruptions enables logistics providers to make more informed operational decisions. With access to timely data, companies can reroute shipments, reposition inventory and adjust supply chain plans in advance, reducing the impact of delays while improving efficiency and resilience.

Meanwhile, companies such as DP World are deploying predictive analytics alongside AI to optimise warehouse operations, improve inventory management and enhance capacity planning across their logistics networks. “These capabilities are increasingly delivered through our Logistics Control Tower and Fourth-Party Logistics (4PL) solutions, which provide customers with a single operational view across suppliers, transport providers, warehouses and inventory,” added Sears.

For African businesses grappling with supply chain disruptions and long lead times, predictive analytics is increasingly becoming a valuable tool for improving resilience, lowering costs and enabling faster, more efficient supply chain operations.

Many border delays stem not from the physical movement of cargo but from documentation errors, incomplete information, manual procedures and poor data sharing between agencies. Greater digitalisation and earlier exchange of information can streamline border processes, reduce administrative bottlenecks and improve the efficiency of cross-border cargo movement.

DHL Global Forwarding highlighted that the impact of smart logistics is most visible in trade corridors where digital customs systems and trade facilitation measures have been adopted. These initiatives have helped reduce duplication, improve coordination and speed up cross-border cargo movement.

“So yes, smart logistics can reduce clearance times. But the biggest impact comes when technology is combined with the right processes on the ground. Digital tools help, but they need to work together with customs modernisation, better coordination between agencies, and good preparation by logistics providers and customers,” added Monteiro.

“The Maputo Corridor is a strong example of how integrated logistics and digitalisation can transform regional trade. By combining 24/7 terminal operations with inland logistics at Komatipoort, integrated customs clearance, bonded logistics and specialised cold-chain infrastructure.”

William Sears, DP World

The greatest gains have been recorded on trade corridors where investments in physical infrastructure are complemented by digital visibility, integrated logistics services and trade facilitation measures, improving the efficiency and reliability of cross-border cargo movement.

Sears shared, “The Maputo Corridor is a strong example of how integrated logistics and digitalisation can transform regional trade. By combining 24/7 terminal operations with inland logistics at Komatipoort, integrated customs clearance, bonded logistics and specialised cold-chain infrastructure, DP World is creating a seamless cross-border trade platform that helps Southern African exporters move goods more efficiently from production to global markets.”

Similarly, Monteiro indicated, “The Lobito Corridor is also one to watch. It has strong potential for Angola, DRC and Zambia, especially for inland production zones that need more reliable access to global markets. Its success will depend on whether rail, port, customs and border processes can work together consistently.”

Eastern Africa is another region where digitalisation is making a meaningful difference, with the Berbera-Addis Corridor another strong example, he added.

According to DHL, the Northern and Central Corridors in East Africa remain critical trade routes for landlocked countries such as Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The company noted that digital customs processes, electronic cargo tracking and one-stop border posts have improved shipment visibility, reduced duplication and streamlined border clearance.

The Abidjan–Lagos Corridor is also emerging as a key trade route for West Africa, particularly for Nigeria. As customs authorities increasingly adopt electronic sharing of transit information, the corridor has the potential to reduce manual paperwork, improve cross-border coordination and facilitate faster cargo movement.

As Africa continues to modernise its trade infrastructure, the convergence of digital customs systems, predictive analytics, AI and strategic infrastructure investments is reshaping the movement of goods across the continent. While challenges such as infrastructure gaps and border bottlenecks remain, the growing adoption of smart logistics is helping build more efficient, resilient and connected supply chains that will be critical to supporting the next phase of intra-African trade.