Morocco’s Tanger Med Port Records World Biggest Increase in Connectivity Index- UNCTAD

Morocco’s Tanger Med port has recorded the world’s biggest increase in the connectivity index since it started operations in 2007, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

In a recently released study, UNCTAD says that the extension of Tanger Med port, which required an investment of €3.5 billion, has tripled the total processing capacity of the container terminals of the complex, reaching 9 million twenty-foot equivalents (TEUs), compared to three million previously.

The Tanger Med port and Said port in Egypt are the leading African ports in the Mediterranean region, which offer extensive transshipment services thanks to their geographical locations and private investment from global port operators, says UNCTAD in its study on maritime transport for the year 2019.

The port complex on the Mediterranean coast of Morocco covers 1,000 hectares and includes the Tanger Med I port, with a capacity of three million TEUs / year, the passenger and ro-ro port, and the Tanger Med II port with a capacity of six million TEUs / year.

The extension of Morocco’s Tanger Med port in June increased the total capacity of Morocco’s 13 ports combined to 260 million tons.

In 2018, Morocco’s 13 ports combined handled 138 million tons, leaving 120 million tons of additional capacity to be filled.

The same year, Tanger Med was ranked as the first container port in Africa and the 45th in the world in a survey by World Top Container Ports.
Tanger Med port has further anchored Morocco in the Euro-Mediterranean area and in its Maghreb and Arab environment, enhancing its vocation as a pole of exchange between Europe and Africa.

The port connects Morocco to 77 countries and 186 ports globally while serving as a main hub for maritime traffic to West Africa.

The port has also served as a catalyst for investments in the region as it is surrounded by five free zones.