The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) faces pressure ahead of the peak activity at the Mombasa port, coinciding with the December festivities.
Traders and shippers are cautioning of potential delays and congestion if the port agency fails to streamline operations to manage the anticipated high volume of cargo.
“We asked KPA to ensure there is enhanced crane availability and reduced downtime to facilitate faster ship turnaround, encouraging shipping lines to schedule more frequent calls to Mombasa,” said Agayo Ogambi, Chief Executive at Shippers Council for Eastern Africa.
“The number of vessels scheduled to dock in Mombasa is much higher compared to previous years.”
The port is braced for record vessel traffic in the next few weeks as traders rush to stock up ahead of the December festivities.
More than 50 vessels are expected to dock at the Mombasa port in the coming 14 days, including 34 container ships, 11 conventional cargo carriers, four car carriers, and two oil tankers.
The port traditionally records peak traffic in November, following a buildup in activity from late July into October as traders stepped up shipment of stocks in readiness for the Christmas period.
A latest Central Bank of Kenya survey of more than 1,000 private sector CEOs confirmed projections of heightened business activity ahead of December.
The survey shows private sector firms plan to raise the number of full-time employees in the final quarter of the year to support heightened activity anticipated during the festive period.
The CEOs expect improved business activity in the fourth quarter, relative to the third, with higher demand orders, sales, production volumes, and employment levels projected as consumer spending rises.
The Mombasa port handled 32.86 million tonnes of cargo throughput between January and September 2025, compared to 29.97 million during the same period last year, marking a 9.6 percent growth.
In the latest data, the port registered 1.55 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) between January and September 2025 compared to 1.46 million TEUs in 2024.
The increase represents a growth of 91,000 Teus, equivalent to 6.2 percent.
KPA Managing Director, William Ruto, said the agency has invested in equipment and technology to boost efficiency at the port.
“Over the past year, the port has invested heavily in modern handling equipment and technology to boost throughput. Last month, we brought ten Rubber-Tyred Gantry (RTG) to improve efficiency and are part of the authority’s equipment modernisation programme, with the new cranes expected to ease rising cargo pressure at the port,” he said.
KPA two weeks ago offered a significant amnesty on port storage charges for long-stay containers at the Mombasa port ahead of the peak season.
The agency offered an 80 percent waiver on the accrued storage fees as one of the strategies to ease pressure on the port. The amnesty runs until November 6, 2025. Any cargo not cleared by the deadline would be transferred to the Naivasha Inland Container Depot (ICD).
“This measure is expected to improve port efficiency by clearing up space currently occupied by aged cargo. We intend to expedite the clearance of cargo by offering 80 percent amnesty on accrued storage fees,” Mr Ruto said in an October 15, 2025, notice.
KPA said the waiver applies to long-stay containers that have been at the port of Mombasa for more than 21 days from the date of the notice, and those affected cargo owners must lodge a waiver application to be considered for the reduction.
While offering the amnesty, the KPA issued a firm warning regarding uncleared transit containers, saying that all long-stay transit containers that are not cleared within the notice period will be transferred to the Naivasha ICD.
“This transfer will be at the owner’s cost. Furthermore, these containers shall attract normal storage charges from the date the container landed in Mombasa,” Mr Ruto said.
