Logistics services in Djibouti.

Djibouti logistics overview: modes, trade and gateways

Logistics services in Djibouti use sea, air, rail and road to move cargo in and out of the country. Containerized sea freight moves through the ports of Djibouti and Doraleh, which both have cargo pier depths of about 20 m and handle part of about 1.3 million TEU in 2024.

Rail services connect through about 97 km of track, linking port operations with inland movements. Djibouti-Ambouli Airport (JIB) supports air freight alongside passenger traffic. Road haulage connects the ports to land borders with Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia for regional overland distribution and transit trade.

Freight forwarders in Djibouti need strong coordination at the ports of Djibouti and Doraleh, which serve as the main sea gateways for regional trade. Container handling and vessel access are supported by several shipping lines with offices in Djibouti, including OOCL, APL, CMA CGM, COSCO, Emirates Shipping Line, Evergreen, HMM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, Maersk and ONE.

The logistics performance index for Djibouti is 2.7 in 2022, with customs at 2.6 and infrastructure at 2.3. When selecting freight forwarders in Djibouti, shippers should look for experience dealing with Ethiopia and other major partners such as the UAE and China, and knowledge of COMESA and AU regional arrangements. Attention to transit times is relevant, as the LPI time score of 3.6 is above the world median.

FCL and LCL shipping from and to Djibouti runs through the seaports of Djibouti (DJJIB) and Doraleh (DJDCT), both classed as small ports with cargo pier depths of about 20 m. Djibouti handled about 1.3 million TEU in 2024, ranking 63rd of 168 countries worldwide and 12th of 21 in its region for container throughput.

Liner shipping connectivity stood at 34.13 in 2021, ranking 51st of 169 countries and 10th of 21 in the region. Several global shipping lines have offices here, including OOCL, APL, CMA CGM, COSCO, Emirates Shipping Line, Evergreen, HMM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, Maersk and ONE. Short sea routes link Djibouti to Jeddah (1283 km), Salalah (1374 km) and Port Said (2549 km), supporting both FCL and LCL shipping from and to Djibouti.

Air freight in Djibouti centers on Djibouti-Ambouli Airport (JIB), the main airport with scheduled services. There are 10 airports in total across the country, providing options for domestic air operations.

Recorded air freight volume is about 0.1 million tonne-km in 1991. Air cargo is a complement to sea and land routes for higher value or time-sensitive shipments within Djibouti’s trade mix, which includes items such as cars, refined petroleum, seed oils and palm oil.

Rail and road freight in Djibouti supports both domestic and transit movements. The rail network has about 97 km of track and historically carried about 118 million tonne-km of freight in 2005, linking port facilities with inland routes.

Road transport connects to neighboring countries along borders with Eritrea at about 125 km, Ethiopia at about 342 km and Somalia at about 61 km. These corridors allow trucking between Djibouti’s ports and regional markets, especially for Ethiopia, which accounts for about 77% of export trade by partner share.

Customs clearance in Djibouti takes place within a WTO member economy that also belongs to COMESA and the AU. The country has been a member of the World Customs Organization since 2008-03-19. Average applied tariff is about 17.56 percent based on 2014 figures.

The logistics performance index customs score is 2.6 in 2022, matching the world median of 2.6. Overall LPI is 2.7. Reported export lead time is about 2 days and import lead time is about 3 days in 2016. For documentation, shippers should at minimum prepare a commercial invoice, packing list and relevant transport document for Djibouti customs processes.