In Côte d'Ivoire, maritime transport is provided by two major ports: the Port of Abidjan and the Port of San Pedro.

  • The Port of Abidjan

The Port of Abidjan is the largest port in West Africa in terms of the volume of goods handled. It is also the first African port certified to the ISO 9001 standard (since 2008) and the ISO 14001 standard (since 2015). It accounts for 90% of the country's external trade and serves as a port hub for the landlocked countries of the hinterland (Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger).

The Port of Abidjan has 34 berths over 6 km; 140,000 m2 of warehouses and hangars; a water area of 1,000 hectares, a raw land area of 800 hectares, and 105,000 m2 of developed land.

It has two container terminals, a grain terminal, a fruit terminal, and a roll-on/roll-off terminal.

The total cargo traffic at this port increased from 21.7 million tons in 2012 to 34.7 million tons in 2023, representing an average annual growth of 4.4%.

Evolution of cargo traffic at the Autonomous Port of Abidjan

Sources: Ministry of Transport; Autonomous Port of Abidjan

  • The Port of San Pedro

The Port of San Pedro is located in the southwest of the country and is the world's leading port for cocoa exports. It is accessible via a good road network connecting it to its hinterland. Additionally, there are fully paved routes classified as community routes under the Inter-State Transit Convention for the transport of goods in transit (to or from neighboring countries).

The total cargo traffic at this port reached 7.023 million tons in 2023, compared to 3.2 million tons in 2012, representing an average annual growth of 7.3%. The activity benefited from the commissioning of a cold storage facility for seafood in August 2020, and a multi-purpose industrial terminal named (TIPSP) with 270 linear meters of quays inaugurated in September 2022.

Evolution of cargo traffic at the Autonomous Port of San Pedro

ITEMS

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

IMPORTS

251,233

342,158

594,691

750,473

905,409

1,024,912

1,028,528

1,016,474

1,874,006

1,502,739

1,228,814

EXPORTS

1,139,606

1,290,147

1,390,614

1,814,830

1,992,069

2,042,077

2,987,005

2,950,920

3,401,740

3,985,837

4,243,703

TOTAL IMPORT/EXPORT

1,390,839

1,632,305

1,985,305

2,565,303

2,897,478

3,066,989

4,015,533

3,967,394

5,275,746

5,488,576

5,472,517

TOTAL TRANSLOADING

2,934,826

3,105,474

2,866,085

2,046,802

1,633,171

1,014,174

1,050,152

788,439

839,212

752,927

483,928

TOTAL CARGO TRAFFIC

4,325,665

4,737,779

4,851,390

4,612,105

4,530,649

4,081,163

5,065,685

4,755,833

6,114,958

6,241,503

7,023,763

SHIP CALLS

533

489

515

496

449

418

432

388

421

391

381

CONTAINER THROUGHPUT (TEU)

333,334

336,767

286,516

250,103

244,045

249,972

263,819

228,310

254,969

242,679

228,271

Sources: Ministry of Transport; Autonomous Port of San Pedro

  • In terms of prospects, the following is planned:

At the Port of Abidjan

  • the extension of the fruit terminal at a cost of 18 billion CFA francs;

  • the implementation of a lagoon transport project for goods by barge at a cost of 100 billion CFA francs. Feasibility studies have been completed;

  • the construction of the Vridi-Marcory bridge (with embankment) at a cost of 40 billion CFA francs to improve fluidity in the port area;

  • the construction of a 3x4 tunnel crossing the Vridi canal at a cost of 210 billion CFA francs;

  • the filling in of the Bietry bay at a cost of 40 billion CFA francs;

  • the construction of 5 heavy truck parking lots and the establishment of a truck call system at a cost of 50 billion CFA francs;

The search for funding for these various projects is ongoing, except for the fruit terminal extension project.

At the Port of San Pedro

  • the construction and operation of a container terminal at a cost of 440 billion CFA francs;

  • the construction and operation of a mineral terminal at a cost of 500 billion CFA francs to meet the needs of the Ivorian mining sector;

  • the realization of the logistics platform (advanced port) in Odienné at a cost of 47 billion CFA francs.

The search for funding for these various projects is ongoing.