By Asha Elmi - Reporter
DJIBOUTI, Aug. 3 2026 – Djibouti's ports are prepared to hold additional shipping traffic despite Red Sea disruptions, the head of the country's ports authority said on Sunday. He warned that rising freight costs linked to the crisis around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait are putting pressure on regional economies.
Aboubaker Omar Hadi, chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority, said container shipping costs for countries in the region had risen sharply from about $3,000 to $10,000 per container as a result of the crisis.
"We cannot absorb these costs ourselves, and we are looking at how to avoid operating at a loss," Hadi said in an interview aired Djibouti Radio and Television (RTD).
He said Djibouti's port infrastructure remained fully operational and ready to handle additional business despite the challenging regional environment.
"The ports of Djibouti have always been ready. We have all the necessary facilities," Hadi said, noting that the country now operates six ports, including five deep-water facilities added to expand capacity.
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"We are ready to welcome any business that requests our services," he added.
Djibouti sits on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world's busiest maritime corridors linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. The route has come under increased pressure from regional security tensions, disrupting shipping and driving up transport costs.
Hadi said Djibouti had sufficient port capacity to serve countries across the region and had no immediate plans to construct additional ports or free zones.
"We do not intend to over-invest by building more ports or free zones," he said. "Our priority is to make the best use of the infrastructure we have already built."
He added that future growth in port activity would depend largely on global and regional economic conditions rather than the expansion of new infrastructure.