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The Somali Ports and Marine Transport Minister Nur has announced that construction of a new port in Mogadishu will begin next year.
Somali Minister of Ports and Marine Transport Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, stating that his country will start building a new port integrated into the international system next year, said, “We will establish both a regional transit system and a free zone at this port.”
Minister Nur, a graduate of Turkey, who is in London as part of the “International Maritime Organization (IMO) 34th General Assembly Meeting” held in the United Kingdom between 24 November and 3 December, gave statements to an AA correspondent.
Nur pointed out that Mogadishu Port, the largest port in Somalia, is currently used for local logistics and has limited connections to global transit systems.
Despite this, he announced that a new port integrated into the international maritime network would be built, saying, “We will begin construction of a new port in 2026. It will be a very large port, and we will implement both a regional transit system and a free zone there.”
“Mogadishu Port ranks first in East Africa”
Minister Nur underlined that in an index evaluating 407 ports globally and 47 in Africa, Mogadishu Port ranked first in East Africa.
He emphasized that this success was achieved thanks to equipment investments and technical system support provided by the Somali Federal Government, adding, “We don’t need competition— we are already number one. God willing, we will further develop the port by introducing new systems.”
Nur also stated that the port has now switched to 24/7 uninterrupted operations, which has reduced congestion, saying:
“In 2020, some ships had to wait for days to unload containers. Now we’ve reduced this to 6 hours. The business community using the port is very satisfied. Since the port runs day and night, traffic in Mogadishu has also eased.”
He added that they predict the 24/7 operating model will contribute around 30% to Somalia’s economy.
He noted that the new system has already increased daily container handling capacity by 20%, and that they aim to raise this to 50%.
TEU capacity expansion
Nur explained that with major investments into Mogadishu Port, operated by the Turkish company Albayrak Group, efforts are underway to increase handling capacity from 150,000 TEU to 250,000 TEU.
He added, “We reached 180,000 TEU this year, and God willing we will raise it to 250,000 TEU.”
“We want to benefit from Türkiye’s maritime experience”
Nur pointed to the importance of cooperation between Somalia and Türkiye’s transport ministries, stating:
“Türkiye is a very advanced country in maritime transport. Somalia is just beginning to join the global maritime system. We have Africa’s longest coastline. God willing, we want to develop ourselves in maritime transport and benefit from Türkiye’s experience. We will strengthen this cooperation soon.”
Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, hosts the country’s largest port—modernized and operated by Albayrak Group since 2014, following modernization work carried out by the Turkish company.
AA: Zuhal Demirci
