The marine infrastructure of Africa is very important to the continent’s economic development since it provides a supporting structure. Seaports serve a key role in enabling business, assuring the efficient transportation of commodities, and building linkages between Africa and international markets.
The ongoing security crisis in the Red Sea has rerouted major shipping lines away from key African gateways, causing delays, higher insurance costs, and reduced vessel calls to Eastern and Northern African ports. Meanwhile, major Western carriers have scaled back operations on some West African routes due to lower freight demand and capacity constraints.
However, Africa continues to play a modest role in global container shipping, with only four ports listed in the 2025 Lloyd’s List top 100. Morocco’s Tanger Med remains the continent’s strongest performer, ranking 17th globally after handling over 10.2 million TEUs in 2024—an 18.9% surge that reinforces its role as a major transshipment gateway.
Egypt follows with Port Said at 53rd position, although its 3.9 million TEUs represented a slight decline due to disruptions in the Red Sea. Alexandria showed stronger momentum, climbing to 2.2 million TEUs and posting one of the region’s fastest throughput gains.
Togo’s Lomé Port completes Africa’s presence, ranking 92nd with more than 2 million TEUs, maintaining its growing influence in West Africa’s shipping corridors.
Africa’s top-performing ports, ranked globally
Below are the only African terminals listed among the world’s 100 best-performing container ports:
| Ranking | Port & Country | Throughput 2024 (teu) |
| 1 | Tanger Med, Morocco | 10,241,392 |
| 2 | Port Said, Egypt | 3,905,266 |
| 3 | Alexandria, Egypt | 2,211,851 |
| 4 | Lomé, Togo | 2,060,435 |
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*Source: Lloyd’s List; Business Insider Africa; Leadership News; Nubia Page.
