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Djibouti Port ban puts Ethiopian MTOs in limbo

By our staff reporter

https://capitalethiopia.com/2025/12/14/ ... -in-limbo/

December 14, 2025

Ethiopia’s critical trade lifeline through Djibouti is under immediate threat, as a fierce regulatory standoff has paralyzed the country’s newly licensed multimodal transport operators (MTOs), with experts warning that only top‑level intervention between the two countries’ leaders can resolve the crisis.

The Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority (DPFZA) has firmly barred the operators from its territory, contradicting Ethiopia’s logistics liberalization drive and setting the stage for a high‑stakes diplomatic clash that observers say cannot be settled at a technical level alone.

This follows a recent DPFZA directive reaffirming a ban on licensed Ethiopian MTOs operating at the border—a move that has sparked considerable concern within the industry and derailed operators’ plans to begin services by the deadline set by Ethiopian regulators. In a letter issued one month ago, the authority restated a position first communicated nearly twenty months earlier, casting renewed uncertainty over the prospects of the newly licensed firms.

Sources close to the matter told Capital that the dispute has been under review within relevant Ethiopian government offices since Djibouti’s latest communication. Both private- and public‑sector representatives have voiced concern that the continued exclusion of Ethiopian MTOs from Djibouti would disrupt logistics chains that have relied almost entirely on Djibouti’s ports for the past three decades.

They stress that the deadlock can only be broken through top‑tier engagement.

It is expected that senior leadership from both countries will discuss the matter, as dialogue has stalled at lower administrative tiers,

one source said, noting that Ethiopia’s Ministry of Transport and Logistics has decided Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed should raise the issue with Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh.

Sources in Djibouti add that operators there, united under their association ATD, are keen to acquire shares in Ethiopia’s recently liberalized MTO sector. Experts point out that Ethiopia has opened its logistics industry to foreign participation in multiple forms, including joint ventures with local companies, arguing that Djiboutian firms could invest through Ethiopian entities rather than blocking the new licenses altogether.

Djiboutian authorities have also raised technical objections, including that the newly approved Ethiopian MTOs lack guarantees from recognized international insurers—a prerequisite for operating in Djibouti under its current rules. Sector players say they have been told the broader dispute could ultimately be resolved under a revision of a bilateral agreement signed by the two nations at the start of the millennium.

The revision covers around fifteen points and could be time‑consuming. Therefore, the multimodal transport clause should be annexed separately to allow the new operators to begin work sooner,

one source told Capital.

Another observer added,

It is my understanding that Djibouti’s primary aim is to protect its interests, not to completely halt MTO activity.

The conflict dates back to March 2024, when the Ethiopian Maritime Authority (EMA) granted MTO licenses to six new operators, ending the long‑standing monopoly of the state‑owned Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics (ESL). The reform was intended to introduce competition into a sector that includes operations in Djibouti—Ethiopia’s essential maritime gateway as the world’s most populous landlocked country.

The DPFZA responded swiftly. In a March 17, 2024 notice signed by Chairman Aboubaker Omar Hadi, the authority declared that Non‑Vessel Operating Common Carriers (NVOCCs) are not authorized to act as MTOs within Djibouti. It stated that Bills of Lading issued by NVOCCs are not recognized in Djibouti’s ports and trade corridors due to concerns over their legal status, citing risks related to payment security, cargo tracking and financial accountability. Sector experts have criticized the stance, arguing that it conflicts with prevailing international maritime and trade practices.

In the wake of the initial fallout, senior Ethiopian officials visited Djibouti, and in May last year both nations agreed to form a joint committee to settle the dispute amicably. The committee was tasked with reviewing longstanding bilateral instruments, including the 2002 Ethio‑Djibouti Utilization of the Port of Djibouti and Services to Cargo in Transit Agreement. Experts note that the original multimodal framework from 2006 was negotiated at a time when ESL was the sole operator—a fundamentally different landscape from today’s liberalized market with six new MTO licensees.

Despite these diplomatic efforts, the DPFZA’s most recent letter, dated November 10 and addressed to the Ethiopian diplomatic mission in Djibouti, firmly restates its original position. The letter, which became public a week ago, asks the Ethiopian Embassy to convey the authority’s clarification to relevant institutions in Addis Ababa.

It explicitly declares that an NVOCC does not own or operate sea‑going vessels and that, accordingly, a Bill of Lading issued by an NVOCC

is not recognized within the Djibouti Ports and Corridors

due to its legal status.

The authority maintains that only Bills of Lading issued by vessel‑operating shipping lines acting as MTOs are legally valid for cargo movements within its jurisdiction.

This latest turn has become a critical priority for logistics players in Addis Ababa. Sources report that the newly licensed MTOs are now urging the Ethiopian government to broker a resolution—a pressing need given that the EMA has set an October 2025 deadline for them to begin operations.

The six companies awarded MTO licenses in March 2025 are Gulf Ingot, Panafric Global, Tikur Abay Transport, Cosmos MTO, Ethio‑Djibouti Railway Standard Gauge Share Company (EDR) and Ethiopian Railway Corporation. Notably, EDR—a bilateral joint venture—has been allowed to operate, leading other licensees to assume they too would be permitted to commence business. Some had already begun preparatory work for clients before Djibouti’s latest letter surfaced.

Attempts by Capital to obtain additional comments from Transport and Logistics Minister Alemu Sime and EMA Deputy Director General Fraol Tafa were unsuccessful at the time of writing.


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"ጠሊት ምን ሓልበያ፡ ጨምቀያ ትፈተ:" የሚል ኣባባል ኣለ በትግረ።። ፍየል ከሚያልባት፡ የሚጨምቃት ትወዳለች ማለት ነው። የኤርትራ መንግስት፡ ከዓሰብ እስክ ቡሬ ያለው 71 ኪሎሜትር መንገድ ጠግኖ፡ ኢትዮጵያን የማይከብድ ክፍያ እያስከፈለ: የዓሰብ ወደብ እንዲጠቀሙ ተዘጋጅቶ ነበር። ግን የሚጨምቃቸው የሚውዱ ኣሻፈረኝ ኣሉ። ወደቡን እንወስዳለን ብለው ጨፈሩ። ጂቡቲ ትጭመቃቸው ኢንግዲህ።


Eritrean Press
12 November 2019

Assab Ready to Welcome Ethiopians

Photo courtesy of Ghideon Musa

13 Nov 2019 - (EP) The 71 km asphalt road (pictured) connecting the port of Assab to Bure on Ethiopia border is finished.

Assab which was one of the busiest Horn of Africa port was purchased by the Rubattino Shipping Company in 1869 and the site of Italy's first settlement in Eritrea.
The Addis Abeba – Assab road is 882 km long and 811 km in Ethiopia, and the remaining 71 km in the Eritrean area.

Economically, it had been the lifeline of Ethiopia's sea trade as well as its primary source of salt and refined oil products.

At the time of independence, Eritrea government granted Ethiopia continued free and unfettered access to Assab's port facility. However, the Tigrayan regime (TPLF) in Addis wanted to annex Assab by force for their planned Greater Tigrayan Republic which the intended independence from Ethiopia is finally squashed in 2018.

The Assab-Bure road has not been used for two decades since a two-year war broke out between the two countries in 1998 due to TPLF's wicked dream.

Last year, Ethiopian reformist Prime Minister Dr Abiy Ahmed acknowledged the challenge after visiting Assab, “we want to use Eritrean ports, for reasons you know. When we request the Eritrean government to use the ports, they say, 'the road is damaged it hasn’t been operation for twenty-years, we need to repair it, And to repair the road we need design, the port wasn’t functional for twenty-years, there is no power and no cranes, we have to accomplish this and that, And that requires financing. We need to prepare.' When they say that, we have to prepare by repairing our side of the road to Bure and we should not tell them to start with the available roads they have."

A year later, Eritrean construction companies with its internal resource finished the 71km Assab to Bure dirt road to a 'spanking' new asphalt road to serve the people of Ethiopia.

America
Sudan’s Burhan discusses ceasefire with U.S. Boulos in Riyadh

https://sudantribune.com/article/308255


Massad Boulos, U.S. Senior Advisor for Africa in Kigali, on 8 April 2025 , Paul Kagame page on flicker

December 15, 2025 (RIYADH) – Sudan’s army chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, held a closed meeting with the U.S. President’s Advisor for African Affairs, Masoud Boulos, in Riyadh on Monday to discuss developments in the war-torn country and a proposed humanitarian truce, diplomatic sources reported.

The meeting, the third known encounter between the two men, focused on reviewing the latest developments and repercussions of the current conflict in Sudan, as well as diplomatic efforts to achieve security and stability.

Boulos is a key figure in the U.S.-led diplomatic push for peace in Sudan, which is backed by the Quad mechanism (U.S., Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE). This mechanism recently proposed a roadmap beginning with a three-month humanitarian truce, a proposal Burhan had previously publicly rejected in late November.

Burhan had arrived in Riyadh earlier on Monday for a visit that included an introductory meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, which the Sudanese Foreign Ministry later stated was to express appreciation for Saudi efforts and U.S. engagement in peace efforts.

The meeting between Burhan and Boulos addressed methods for delivering humanitarian aid to the hard-hit Darfur and Kordofan regions, which are facing severe humanitarian distress amid the conflict. Press reports indicated that aid from the United Nations and the European Union had recently reached these regions, despite the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) controlling major cities and blocking access routes for months.

Following his talks with the Sudanese army chief, Boulos met separately on Monday with Saudi Minister of Defence Prince Khalid bin Salman bin Abdulaziz. The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that their discussion covered regional developments, efforts to establish peace, and matters of mutual interest, highlighting the coordinated diplomatic efforts between Washington and Riyadh regarding the Sudan conflict.