DHL Express, the world’s leading international express provider, has invested UGSHS 9 billion (+/-EUR 2,400,000) in a new facility in Uganda, to support the significant trade growth in the country. The investment includes a newly- built corporate office and a world- class service center to manage the increased volume of inbound and outbound shipments.
Hennie Heymans, CEO of DHL Express Sub Saharan Africa (SSA), who was present in Kampala to celebrate the official opening, says that DHL’s investment in this new best-in- class facility in Uganda truly affirms the company’s commitment of Africa, and more specifically, East Africa, “Uganda is a key market for us and we will continue investing in our people, facilities and network across the region, to ensure that we are well positioned to service increased demand.”
With a positive economic outlook for the country and expected GDP growth of 5.9% in the next year, Fatima Abubakar, Country Manager for DHL Express Uganda, says that the rapid growth in Uganda has necessitated the construction of the Kampala office to efficiently accommodate an increase in the inbound and outbound flow of parcel volumes.
“The new facility makes use of a drive-in model, which maximizes productivity and increases the volume of parcels processed daily to ensure the faster delivery of shipments to customers in the region. The increased capacity in the new facility will enable us handle a double digit increase in parcels processed per hour and will allow further growth of us to triple digits if required,” adds Fatma.
Speaking on behalf of H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, the President of Uganda, Hon. Hillary Onek, the current Minister for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees congratulated DHL Uganda upon opening up their own facility in Uganda.
“I thank you for investing in such a project which will go a long way in making you save a lot of money that would have been required to be spent on renting office space,” he said, adding that the government of Uganda is at the forefront to support investment ventures of this kind.
“We advocated for the private sector led growth and we have been able to offer a secure environment to enable these ventures thrive,” he added.
The additional upgrades in the facility include an increase in floor space, enhanced working condition as well as advancements in the technology and processes utilized, including a direct loading facility, retrofitted vehicles and state of the art security systems. Furthermore, the Kampala facility will also house the Customs team for more efficient in-house customs processing, along with a customs controlled bonded warehouses, which equates to improved speed to market.
This is a truly unique and innovative investment within the express logistics industry in Uganda.
The Kampala facility is also TAPA “A” Class certified, along with 23 DHL Express facilities across SSA, which is a highly sought-after logistics security accreditation and certification, and considered to be one of the industry’s most rigorous independent certification.