Publication: Hub and Spoke vs. Multiple Ports of Call
Date
1998-08
ISSN
Published
1998-08
Author(s)
World Bank
Abstract
In a hub and spoke system of
containerized seaborne trade, cargo to a region is delivered
first to a primary hub port and then transported to its
final destination, whether by sea, rail, road or inland
waterways. Similarly, exports from the region are collected
in the primary hub, and then transported to final
destination. While these primary ports are often equipped to
allow for a quick turnaround time of vessels, there are
usually two primary characteristics that set them apart from
other ports: the primary hubs: (a) tend to be geographically
central to the region (sometimes with a substantial
hinterland - that is, it attracts a considerable amount of
cargo that would in any case flow through that port); and
(b) can accommodate larger vessels than other ports in the
region. The West and Central African coast from Mauritania
to Angola is one of the few regions of the world without a
dominant hub distribution port. Since the evolution of the
hub and spoke concept has been driven by competitive forces
to lower container unit costs, the natural question to ask
is: what features in the containerized traffic between the
region and Europe, the predominating trade flow, have
prevented hub development?
Citation
“World Bank. 1998. Hub and Spoke vs. Multiple Ports of Call. Africa Region Findings & Good Practice Infobriefs; No. 116. © Washington, DC. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/0f03ff00-2d69-5f96-818c-5c3b3ac42096 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”