Durban’s port was ranked the most improved in 2025 by a World Bank study, while Cape Town’s port ranked at the bottom among the 400 assessed locations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Durban Container Port (DCP) is the busiest point of entry for cargo in South Africa, handling approximately 88 million tonnes of goods every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The port is an essential part of South Africa’s import and export processes, and is operated by the state-owned company Transnet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In recent years, the port has come under scrutiny for operational delays, leading to backlogs and poor performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These operational delays would often leave trucks carrying cargo waiting to unload, and would lead to long turnaround times for container ships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Container ship turnaround times are the primary indicator of port performance, according to the Container Port Performance Index (CPPI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This index is a ranking done in partnership with the World Bank and the S&P, which assesses the performance and operational efficiency of 400 global ports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In its 2024 rankings, the CPPI listed the DCP as the worst-performing container port in the world due to its high turnaround times and the time ships spent waiting to be unloaded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the 2025 rankings, this gloomy outlook on the Durban port shifted, with it being ranked as the most improved facility globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The CPPI attributed this improvement to several factors, including stabilising its operations, recovering equipment, and implementing management reforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The index also noted that increased public-private partnerships had helped the port, including its deal with International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) to manage operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
ICTSI, a port-operating company based in the Philippines, agreed to the venture at the end of 2025, bringing R11 billion in investment into the DCP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The operational gains have been supported by new investments and increased private sector participation,” the CPPI said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The most structurally significant development is the December 2025 awarding of a 25-year concession with ICTSI to modernise Durban Container Terminal Pier 2”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Port-of-Cape-Town-.jpg\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nDCP’s rapid improvement in the 2025 rankings left Cape Town’s port as the bottom-ranked by the CPPI for the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The index noted that this poor performance was caused by uncontrollable factors, such as adverse weather conditions, as well as equipment reliability issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These factors led to a high variability in turnaround times for container ships entering the port, according to the CPPI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n