Why Tanzania Needs More Dry Ports and Inland Container Depots (ICDs) in Songwe Region to Control Tunduma Border Traffic

The Tunduma–Nakonde border is the busiest land crossing in Tanzania and one of the most strategic trade corridors in East and Southern Africa. Every day, thousands of trucks cross between Tanzania and Zambia, connecting the Dar es Salaam Port with countries such as DR Congo, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. But with increasing trade volumes, congestion at Tunduma has become a bottleneck that slows business, reduces efficiency, and causes Tanzania to lose significant revenue.

Building more Dry Ports and Inland Container Depots (ICDs) in Songwe Region is not just a solution it is a strategic national priority with major economic benefits.

1. To Reduce Tunduma Border Congestion and Speed Up Cargo Movement

Traffic congestion at Tunduma leads to long queues of trucks, often stretching many kilometres. This slows clearance, increases transport time, and makes the border one of the most costly points along the Dar–Kapiri–Lubumbashi corridor.

When trucks remain idle for 2–7 days waiting for clearance, exporters lose money, importers face delays, and Tanzania’s competitiveness as a transit country decreases. Establishing ICDs in Songwe would allow trucks to offload cargo away from the border, clear customs inland, and immediately return to service. This reduces pressure at the border and creates efficient “flow-through” movement instead of queues.

2. To Increase Government Revenue Through Improved Customs Procedures

Border congestion forces a lot of informal and unrecorded trade, especially for transit cargo heading to Zambia and DR Congo. When the border is overloaded, some revenue leakages occur, such as under-declaration of goods, Smuggling through unofficial routes, Quick informal payments to bypass queues, and Cargo diversion to neighbouring countries with faster systems.

ICDs ensure that customs clearance happens in a controlled environment with better inspection, scanners, and digital systems. This increases transparency and reduces revenue losses that happen due to poor border management.

3. To Reduce Transit Costs and Improve Tanzania’s Competitiveness

Currently, much of the cargo that should be cleared in inland depots ends up crowding Dar es Salaam Port or Tunduma Border. By pushing customs and clearing services closer to Songwe, trucks will have fewer delays, transport costs will drop, and Tanzania will become the preferred transit route compared to Beira (Mozambique) or Durban (South Africa). Countries choose routes based on cost and speed. Faster clearance through ICDs means more traffic, more revenue, and more transit fees for Tanzania.

4. To Support the Songwe Airport Cargo Hub and Leverage the Region’s Strategic Position

The upcoming Songwe International Cargo Hub and the region’s proximity to Zambia, Malawi, and DR Congo make it ideal for inland logistics development.

ICDs and dry ports would connect road, air, and potentially rail transport. This creates a multimodal logistics ecosystem where:

• Perishable goods move faster,
• Regional exporters use Songwe as a consolidation point.
• Tanzania becomes a key regional distributor.

This would accelerate economic transformation in the southern highlands.

5. To Create Jobs and Stimulate Industrial Growth in Songwe and Mbeya

Dry ports attract logistics firms, warehouses, truck service companies, and small industries.

Each dry port can create over 500 direct jobs (ICT staff, customs officers, handlers, security), Over 1,000 indirect jobs (food vendors, transport services, accommodation).

Songwe would transform from a transit region into a logistics and industrial hub, attracting manufacturing such as packaging, agro-processing, and assembling industries.

6. To Reduce Over-Reliance on Dar es Salaam Port for Freight Handling

Too much cargo processing happens at Dar es Salaam, causing bottlenecks and delays.

When ICDs in Songwe take over:

• Cargo destined for Zambia and DR Congo will not clog Dar port,
• Offloading is done quickly,
• Customs procedures shift inland,
• Dar es Salaam Port becomes more efficient and competitive.

This distributed system is used in Kenya (Nairobi ICD), Ethiopia (Modjo Dry Port), and South Africa.

7. To Improve National Security and Control of Cross-Border Trade

A congested border is a security risk because it becomes easier for illegal goods to pass unnoticed.

With ICDs:

• Scanning is done inland,
• Trucks are tracked digitally,
• Border checks become lighter and faster,
• Smuggling is minimized.

It strengthens Tanzania’s border management and aligns with global best practices.

8. To Reduce the Revenue Lost from Border Inefficiencies

Tanzania loses millions each year due to delays and unstructured border processes.

Some key sources of revenue loss include:

• Trucks idling for days (lost transit fees),
• Smuggling through unofficial routes,
• Under-declaration of goods,
• Cargo diversion to Beira or Durban due to inefficiencies,
• Bribes that bypass official channels,
• Congestion that slows cargo processing.

Conservatively, border inefficiency can cost Tanzania Tsh 50–150 billion annually in lost customs, transit fees, VAT, and port charges.

Dry ports close these gaps by digitalizing clearance, decentralizing customs, and strengthening cargo monitoring.

Conclusion: Dry Ports in Songwe Are a Strategic Investment for Tanzania’s Future

Building more ICDs and dry ports in Songwe is not simply an infrastructure project; it is a national economic transformation strategy. It will speed up border operations, increase government revenue, boost competitiveness, support industrial growth, and unlock Tanzania’s regional trading potential.

Songwe has the perfect geographic location. The time to develop a logistics hub in southern Tanzania is now before traffic volumes multiply beyond capacity.