News / Menzies Aviation sees potential as it expands cargo handling in Africa 

Photo: Menzies

Menzies Aviation is expanding its cargo handling business in Africa, seeing increasing opportunities in countries like Mozambique.

In September, Menzies Aviation opened a new cargo facility at at Maputo International Airport (MPM).

“The economic outlook for Maputo, and across Mozambique as a whole, has driven our decision to invest in this new cargo facility at MPM,” said AlAnood AlSuwaidi, SVP cargo, MEAA, at Menzies.  

Airlink and its recent investor Qatar Airways are among the launch customers sending goods through the facility, which has a capacity for more than 20,000 tonnes annually. Mr AlSuwaidi believes this capacity will help meet market demand and anticipated volume growth over the coming months.   

“Our teams at the facility will handle general cargo, with a key focus on medicine, car parts and dangerous goods,” he added.  

The new facility is equipped with the new Menzies Aviation Cargo Handling (MACH) cargo management system, which, says Mr AlSuwaidi, represents a “transition to a truly innovative end-to-end cargo management system, revolutionising operations across the Menzies network”. 

Menzies has been operational at MPM  since 2018, operating as National Aviation Services until 2022. 

Its target is to be present in all 54 African countries, collectively a complex market to deal with. However, Menzies believes it can play an active role in simplifying transportation across these countries, optimising point-to-point connectivity, including air cargo and road feeder service handling. 

At each location, says Mr AlSuwaidi, Menzies analyses and assesses the opportunities for expansion, and any hurdles that could hinder the delivery of safe, secure and compliant operations.  

“It’s this bespoke approach that is essential for us to increase our presence across the continent,” he added.  

Customs procedures can present significant challenges to doing business in Africa and Mr AlSuwaidi thinks streamlined procedures are needed, with action required at the highest government level.  

Recently, Menzies announced a partnership with Champ Cargosystems to provide a standard platform to deliver customs filing processes. Its Traxon Global Customs (TGC) solution is integrated into MACH, which  can reduce the risk of customs delays, and provides a platform that allows Menzies to quickly respond and adapt to specific country customs requirements.  

TGC allows the exchange of information with various country customs authorities regardless of format, communications protocols or processing rules.

“It will simplify reporting requirements, since Champ will function as a single gateway for more than 65 customs authorities worldwide.” Mr AlSuwaidi said Menzies was currently in the process of developing a roll-out programme.  

Despite pockets of political instability over the years, Mozambique is reportedly on a growth curve, fuelled by increased private investments. For instance, TotalEnergies is investing  more than $14bn to deliver a planned annual  13m-tonne liquefied natural gas project, helping to bolster economic growth. 

The country is situated on the south-east coast of Africa, which puts it in a strategic location within  the south of the continent and increasingly attractive for investment and industry growth. 

Analysts at Nedbank suggest Mozambique’s positive economic momentum is set to continue and accelerate in 2025. Government elections in October ushered-in a new president, Daniel Chapo, from the ruling Frelimo party, who is widely believed to promote and maintain favourable investment policies. 

Private sector GDP growth forecasts are equally upbeat, according to Nedbank. Elsewhere, the Economist Intelligence Unit foresees growth of 6% in 2024 and an average of 6.5% annually between 2025 and 2027, with growth reaching 9.8% in 2028.