The government of Djibouti withdrew DP World’s concession to operate Doraleh Container Terminal in nearby Djibouti, but the port operator has launched legal action against Djibouti to either recover Doraleh or secure compensation. This is a long-running dispute.

It is also now developing container terminals at both Bosaso and at Berbera in neighbouring Somaliland, with both ports located at the entrance to the Red Sea to the east of Djibouti. Alongside Somaliland, Puntland is one of two territories to have broken away from Somalia that have long functioned as de facto independent states.

The project, which is designed to allow access for container feeder vessels, is due to begin early this year and is expected to take about a year to complete. It involves the repair of the existing 215m quay, the construction of a new 150m quay, creation of a 3,000 m2 container yard and provision of a new entrance gate.

The work will still leave Bosaso as a much smaller port than Berbera, which now has an annual handling capacity of 600,000 TEU/year but DP World has already begun Phase 2 of the port’s development, which will include quay extension and the purchase of seven more gantry cranes.

While Somaliland is keen to secure international recognition as an independent nation, Puntland’s future hangs more in the balance. Reintegration into Somalia seems more likely here if and when the latter’s long civil war comes to a close, militant Islamist group Al Shabaab is sidelined and national cohesion restored. As a result, the Puntland government has been keen to highlight the benefits of the port project to Somalia as a whole and to avoid presenting it as part of an attempt to bolster any claim for independence. However, there are no guarantees. In 2019, DP World’s CEO in Bosaso was assassinated by militants.

Puntland’s Minister of Ports and Maritime Transport, Ahmed Yaasiin Saalah, said: “The expansion and upgrade of the Port of Bosaso is key to Puntland’s economic growth, which will benefit not just the people of the state, but also Somalia and the Horn of Africa. It will ensure the region is further integrated into the global trade ecosystem, as a bigger, more efficient port with the ability to receive container vessels, will facilitate increased trade.”