EAST AFRICA’S INFRASTRUCTURE: A REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE still somewhat slower than southern Africa. The trade density (in US$ per km) is less than one-fifth of the density in southern Africa. Road freight tariffs average $0.07 per tonne-kilometer, in the middle of the range for African regions but still exceedingly high relative to global standards (Teravaninthorn and Raballand 2009).

**Table 2.1 . Relative performance of transport corridors in Africa**

|**Corridor**|**Length**<br>**(kms)**|**Road in good**<br>**condition (%)**|**Trade density (US$**<br>**millions per km)**|**Implicit velocity**<br>**(km per hour)**|**Freight tariff**<br>**(US$ per ton-km)**|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|Western|2,050|72|8.2|6.0|0.08|
|Central|3,280|49|4.2|6.1|0.13|
|**Eastern**|**2,845**|**82**|**5.7**|**8.1**|**0.07**|
|Southern|5,000|100|27.9|11.6|0.05|

Note: Implicit velocity is the total distance divided by the total time taken to make the trip, including time spent stationary at ports, border crossings, and other stops Source **:** Teravaninthorn and Raballand 2009.

According to the 2010 International Logistics Performance Index (LPI),<sup>1</sup> the costs associated with logistics in East Africa are higher than in any other region in world, including West Africa. This is a major change from a few years ago when the LPI in West Africa was considered the worst. In recent years, however, East Africa has been constrained by inadequate infrastructure and customs performance, as well as difficulty in clearing borders (World Bank 2010b). Overall traffic and trade flows in East Africa have also increased without a corresponding improvement in the policy environment. At the country level, Uganda’s LPI ranked at 66 out of 155 countries, a significant improvement since the previous LPI ranking. The low ranking of Rwanda suggests that the country is constrained by logistics (World Bank 2010a).

The domestic LPI suggests that average lead times for exports and imports in East Africa are the highest and second-highest in the developing world, respectively. This is also a change from previous estimates. Freight from landlocked countries in East Africa that must cross borders suffers economic and time penalties when compared with coastal countries. Among countries in East Africa, clearance times for landlocked countries are around five times higher than for those with port access. Among logistics operators surveyed as part of the LPI study, 60 to 75 percent of the respondents from East Africa indicate that the port, airport, and road transport rates are exorbitant, while 45 percent of respondents from the rest of the world indicate that the rates are high or very high.

In comparison to West and central Africa, the trucking industry in East Africa is more competitive and mature. Freight transportation rates are determined by market forces rather than government regulations. In Rwanda, deregulation of the trucking industry illustrates the close correlation between high transport prices and cartelization (box 2.1). The largest professionalized trucking companies claim 20 percent of the market share, a rate comparable to Europe and North America. There are 20 large companies that operate over 100 trucks each. The largest Kenyan company owns a fleet of 600 trucks.

> 1 LPI is an annual survey of international freight forwarders conducted in 155 countries. The survey aggregates the responses of survey participants concerning several factors—among them transport, warehousing, and border clearance—into an index that is used to rank and rate global logistics for trade.

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