Key Highlights:

• DR Congo and Tanzania exchanged land titles to build dry ports as part of a cross-border infrastructure development deal to ease trade and reduce customs delays.
• The dry port project will create regional logistics hubs, with 300 million dollars in Congolese investment and the promise of 3,000 jobs in Tanzania.
• Cargo volumes between Dar es Salaam and the DRC have nearly tripled in four years, prompting urgent investment in logistics platforms to handle growing trade flows.

 The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Tanzania took a major step toward building cross-border dry ports with the official handover of land titles on June 18, 2025, in Dar es Salaam.

The exchange, led by DRC Transport Minister Jean-Pierre Bemba and his Tanzanian counterpart Makame Mbarawa, marks the implementation of a bilateral agreement signed in April to boost regional trade infrastructure.

The project is part of the Central Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency’s (CCTTFA) infrastructure development program, launched in 2022 to modernize transit routes.

According to Bemba, the DRC has granted Tanzania access to 40 hectares of land across two sites—25 hectares in Kasenga and 15 hectares in Kasumbalesa. In return, Tanzania allocated two sites to the DRC: 45 hectares in Kwala, near Dar es Salaam, and 15 hectares in Katosho, close to Kigoma. Local authorities in Haut Katanga suggest a third Congolese site, Kasanbondo (35 ha), was also ceded.

Bemba said the new dry ports will improve cargo traceability, curb fraud and smuggling, and streamline the movement of goods and people. The DRC expects the Tanzanian side of the project to create around 3,000 jobs and attract $300 million in foreign investment. Customs revenue for Congo is also projected to increase.

The government of Haut Katanga confirmed it has signed a $300 million development contract for its dry port sites, although details on contractors and terms remain undisclosed.

The ports will allow both countries to operate customs and logistics platforms on each other’s territory—an effort to reduce clearance times and improve regional trade connectivity.

Logistical pressure along the Tanzania–DRC route is growing fast. According to Tanzania’s Transport Ministry, freight volumes to the DRC via Dar es Salaam rose by 180% over four years. Total traffic at the port jumped from 14 million to 28 million tonnes during the same period.

This article was initially published in French by Ronsard Luabeya (Intern)

Edited in English by Ola Schad Akinocho