A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was recently signed at Red Sea World between Aboubaker Omar Hadi, Chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority, and Dr Lam Akol Ajawin, Minister of Transport of the Republic of South Sudan, in the presence of Hassan Houmed Ibrahim, Minister of Infrastructure and Transport of the Republic of Djibouti.
The MoU represents a milestone in strengthening bilateral cooperation and fostering regional connectivity. The agreement focuses on the investment and development of White Nile river ports and dry ports in South Sudan, to enhance trade facilitation, logistics integration and economic development between the two nations and the wider African Great Lakes Region, in line with the Trans-Africa Corridor framework.
The agreement forms part of the White Nile Corridor development and seeks to capitalise on two strategic multimodal logistics corridors serving South Sudan through an integrated road and river barge network:
- Corridor from Djibouti Ports: Road transport along RN1 – Addis Ababa – Jimma – Gambella – Nasir; followed by river barge transport via the Sobat River → White Nile → Malakal → Juba.
- Corridor from Port Sudan: Road transport along Port Sudan – Kassala – Gadaref – Kosti; followed by river barge transport southbound on the White Nile from Kosti to Juba via Malakal.
These corridors will be complemented by sea–air cargo solutions via Djibouti Ports to handle high-value, time-critical shipments originating from Far East Asia.
During the visit, the South Sudanese delegation toured several strategic facilities. At the Société de Gestion du Terminal à Conteneurs de Doraleh (SGTD), they received a presentation on the port’s operations, handling capacity and performance standards. At the Djibouti Damerjog Industrial Park, the delegation was presented with the Damerjog Liquid Bulk Port (DLBP), currently under commissioning, which is expected to serve as an export gateway for South Sudan’s crude oil. At the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ), the delegation visited the logistics platform acquired by South Sudan to support and facilitate the country’s trade flows.
