Hapag-Lloyd has opened an office in Nairobi, Kenya, as part of its growth strategy in Africa.
Prashant Sindhwani, country manager, will head up the Nairobi office. The shipping company’s main business in the country will continue to be managed from its office in the port city of Mombasa.
Dheeraj Bhatia, senior managing director of the Middle East region at Hapag-Lloyd, said: “Kenya is the economic hub of East Africa and the most important growth region on the continent. By opening our new office in Kenya, we expect to continue our robust growth on the African continent.”
Via the port of Mombasa, Hapag-Lloyd offers two services: the China Kenya Express Service (CKX) that connects the country with key ports in Asia, and the East Africa Service (EAS2), which provides connections with the west coast of India and Jebel Ali in Dubai.
Hapag-Lloyd also serves landlocked East African countries – such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan – with regular inland connections to and from Mombasa. As part of its growth strategy, the shipping company plans to develop inland connections to Somalia, southern Ethiopia and northern Tanzania.
Rolf Habben Jansen, ceo at Hapag-Lloyd, said: “We see an enormous growth potential in Africa and will further invest into our services and selected countries.”
