Mishma Chakanyuka, Staff Writer 
THE National Handling Services (NHS) – which manages the Zimbabwe dry port, based in Walvis Bay Namibia – says the harbour requires at least US$2 million to be fully operational.
Speaking at NHS’s annual general meeting in Harare this week, chief executive Godknows Marawanyika said the port is now able to sustain recurrent expenditure.
The dry port was opened in 2019 and today large volumes of cargo and goods are handled at the port.
The facility is expected to boost trade and bilateral relations between Zimbabwe and Namibia and management is now in overdrive to engage key stakeholders and aggressively market the port.
NHS said in 2022, it invested $19,2 million into the Zimbabwe Dryport up from $5 million in the comparable year.
“The dry port is now capable of meeting operational costs, though it still requires support for procurement of key equipment such as reach starker, cold chain and warehouse facilities. NHS is currently seeking partnerships for the construction of a warehouse at the dry port,” Marawanyika said in the firm’s 2022 annual report.
He said NHS seeks to establish inland dry ports at Chirundu and Forbes border posts in the medium to long term.
“The company has secured land in Chirundu and Forbes border posts for the establishment of inland dry ports to decongest border posts and improve efficiency in the facilitation of import and export cargo,” he said.
Meanwhile, during the year 2022, NHS handled 12 559 flights for both domestic and international routes, a 59 percent increase from the 7 888 flights handled in 2021.
The firm said the flights were five percent below the pre-Covid-19 thresholds of 13 262 flights per annum. A total of 1,3 million passengers were handled last year compared to 379 657 in the comparable year due to increased frequencies during the year under review.
Marawanyika said FastJet and Airlink recorded the highest number of frequencies last year.
FastJet frequencies increased 231 percent to 4 641 in 2022 from the 1 403 recorded in the prior year while Airlink recorded 2 042 frequencies from the 601 recorded in 2021.
“Overall, most airlines improved their flight frequencies in 2022 compared to 2021. The national borders were opened to international travellers during the last half of 2021 and this contributed to the improvement in flights handled during the period under review,” Marawanyika said.
newsdesk@fingaz.co.zw
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