44 Years of Bollore Africa Logistics in Uganda

In 2008, the business popularly known in Africa as SDV Transami rebranded to Bollore Africa Logistics in a bid to integrate its activities on the African continent with those of the countries that have trade relations with Africa.

In Uganda, where the company holds an office that serves as the hub for East Africa operations, the rebranding was announced in 2012 and since then, the company whose portfolio includes supply chain support, purchase order management, freight forwarding, customs brokerage, and equipment provision among others believes with a 44 year old legacy the sky is still the limit. Bollore Africa Logistics Zonal Managing Director Patrick Katayi, spoke to The CEO’s Silvia Nyambura, about the company’s operations, the rebranding and future plans. Excerpts   

Who is Bollore Africa Logistics? 

Bollore Africa Logistics is a subsidiary of the Bollore Group, one of the oldest logistics players in the continent providing transport solutions from sea, air, rail and road. The company started operations in Uganda in 1968 and currently has a footprint in 55 countries (45 of those in Africa), employs over 25,000 in Africa alone and has a fleet of 6,000 vehicles.

Bollore Africa Logistics’ business revolves around warehousing, logistics, clearing and forwarding and plant and equipment hire. What does this entail? 

Every aspect of development and growth has an element of logistics cutting across sectors be it in movement of goods, construction, agriculture and so on. As Bollore, we consider ourselves a global partner in growth and development of the economies in which we operate as we bring these aspects closer to the consumer. We participate in the opening of Africa and facilitate the movement of raw materials, consumer goods or property which are essential to economic development. Additionally, we also offer container terminal management to ship owners and we have interests in other sectors like oil and gas, mining, infrastructure and energy, health, to mention but a few. The company runs warehouses in industrial areas in Uganda and operates trucks to support local and international transport requirements for general cargo, containers and equipment.

What prompted the re-brand from SDV Transami?

Bollore is more of a family name and for the longest time, the company had a transport wing named SDV Transami. In 2008 however, the mother company in France decided to create a brand that would focus on Africa as the place to be in terms of growth and development. SDV was a strong brand but Bollore as a group brought in a higher asset value and the group’s strength was made bigger.  Currently, the company invests over 300 million euro every year and recorded 2.5 million euro in turn over for the year 2012.The rebrand was a complete overhaul instead of a mere facelift to bring business in Uganda to global standards of operation.

What is Bollore Logistics’ contribution to trade in terms of exports and imports in Uganda and how does the company add value to the same?

As a company we believe it is our duty to contribute to the growth of the local market not just in Uganda but in our other markets in the region like Burundi, Rwanda, Eastern DRC, and South Sudan. Most of these economies are agricultural based meaning most of their exports are agricultural products. Our job entails creating supply chains for the farmers to the nearest port in a bid to raise volumes of export. We approach every market according to what it has to offer for example we have been contracted to mobilize resources required for the refurbishment of the railway line in a memorandum of understanding between Benin and Niger. Each market is unique so what we do in West Africa is not necessarily the same thing we focus on in other parts of Africa. For markets aforementioned which are mainly located in the hinterland, our aim is to use our logistics corridors to open up access for producers and make it easy for farmers to trade and transport their goods. As we speak Bollore exports 20 percent of Uganda’s Coffee and about 1800 metric tonnes of tea.

Uganda was recently voted top among her East African peers in ease of doing business. How easy has it been for your company to do business in the country over the past 44 years?

In every business environment there are ups and downs. Uganda Revenue Authority has made it easy for companies like ours to do business. We were recently admitted into the Authorized Economic Operator program (AEO) which gives us priorities to enjoy faster clearance of goods through simplified procedures and reduced inspection and this eliminates delays and reduces the cost of doing business significantly. Uganda’s operational systems are also getting better in structure with less corruption levels in terms of logistics. There is also significant growth in terms of Industrialization and Foreign Direct Investments which makes Uganda a great place to do business. The down side remains the road network which is still wanting and since most Ugandans do not use air freight, businesses like ours who depend on road and rail network would want to see more effort put into streamlining infrastructure.

Bollore Logistics has been supplying equipment for Tullow Oil Uganda and other stakeholders in the oil and gas sector. What other plans does the company have for the sector?

The Oil and Gas sector is progressing albeit at a slow pace but we are looking to get more involved once the activities of the sector increase. We plan to invest in better machinery to be able to fill the identified gaps in the transport and logistics of the sector.

How has the East African Common Market affected your business?

The common market has definitely made it easier to do business as well as expanded our reach even if the integration is moving at a really slow pace. However, the region still remains a costly place to do business in terms of high freight logistics costs but we trust that the effort put in by the regional governments and stakeholders to speed up the integration process will eventually pay off.

The Mombasa port is East Africa’s preferred gateway and has recently undergone massive expansion. How will this affect your business?

Port Expansion as well as other radical projects like the Lamu Port and South Sudan Ethiopia Transport (LAPSSET) which creates a new transport corridor are expected to be great boosts to businesses like ours in terms of simplifying operations as well as reducing the cost of doing business.

44 years in Uganda is quite a long time. What challenges has Bollore Logistics encountered?

Our biggest challenge over the years in Uganda has been the poor road networks which have driven up maintenance costs for our fleet but I must say that this has progressively improved and we trust that in time this will not be an issue anymore.

What is the future like for Bollore Africa Logistics?

The future for us looks very bright as we are planning to invest in bringing in young talent and training them in logistics in a bid to re-invent ourselves as a company. This will be done in partnership with higher institutions of learning to equip students with skills and knowledge about logistics as a key component of economics of any country. We will also invest in new machinery as well as form strategic partnerships with stakeholders in our sector like transporters and government agencies to further grow our business in the region.