EDITORIAL: Concerns by importers need long-term solution
Wednesday, May 20, 2020 0:01
By EDITORIAL
Cargo at the port of Mombasa.
It will greatly cut the trucking distance, translating to reduced costs for importers and investors in the cargo transport business who have been hard hit by Covid-19 disruptions.
The biggest concern all along has been the higher costs importers stand to incur due to the missing last mile connection.
The State is, however, yet to complete the revamp, which means that in addition to the Sh60,960 the importers will at least pay for hauling a 20-foot container to the Rift Valley town from the Port of Mombasa and will have to dig deeper into their pockets to meet the cost of road transport to the final destination.
It is the same conundrum that importers picking their cargo from the Nairobi ICD have been facing, leading to protests as they find it far costlier to ferry goods on the SGR line compared to doing so by road.
