US embassy cable - 05DJIBOUTI326

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 DJIBOUTI 000326 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR AF/E, AF/EX, H AND INR/B 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, SCUL, OREP, PINR, ECON, DJ 
SUBJECT: STAFFDEL CHAKA GETS STATISTICS ON DJIBOUTI'S 
CURRENT PORT; HEARS ABOUT MARITIME TROUBLES WITH ETHIOPIA 
 
REF: DJIBOUTI 304 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY: On March 31, HIRC Staff members Malik Chaka 
and Dr. Pearl Alice Marsh met with Commandant Mohamed Moussa 
Abar, the Harbor Master and Director of Maritime Security at 
the Port of Djibouti (see para 9 for bio). Abar explained to 
the Staffdel how the current port operates, the problems it 
is having with its primary customer, Ethiopia, and its 
potential for cargo expansion. That night, the Staffdel 
attended a lively dinner hosted by the Ambassador where 
conversation ranged from Djibouti's economic future to female 
genital mutilation. Bios of dinner attendees are attached in 
Para 9 for INR. END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (U) Chaka and Marsh's meeting with Abar reflected the 
Staffdel's interest in maritime security, the Global War on 
Terror and economic and development issues in Djibouti. Abar 
described the container terminal and conventional port which 
currently fields 100 percent of Djibouti's maritime traffic. 
 
3. (U) Chaka asked how much of the port's incoming cargo was 
comprised of goods for Ethiopia, as Djibouti is the country's 
only outlet to the sea. Abar said that 80 percent of the 
goods received in the port are bound for Addis Ababa. That is 
a 60 percent increase over May of 1998 when Djibouti began 
making changes to attract commercial traffic to the port, 
including decreasing tariffs and speeding up transit. Abar 
said that about 35 percent of that cargo originates in Europe 
and the remainder comes from the Middle East/Far East. 
 
4. (U) Abar added that the port continues to have problems 
with an Ethiopian bureaucracy and banking system that is 
extremely slow and inefficient. He said it routinely takes up 
to six months for Ethiopia to inspect and clear cargo, 
despite the fact that more than 20 Ethiopian customs 
officials charged solely with doing so work at the Djibouti 
Port. Abar pointed out that with the Port's technology, this 
process should take no more than a few days at maximum. 
Problems moving Ethiopian goods prompted Djibouti to begin 
charging for cargo storage after 30 days, rather than the 
previous 60 days. Ethiopians complain it is an unrealistic 
time frame, Abar said.  NOTE: Abar added that after cargo 
leaves Djibouti by truck it is often held up in customs in 
Addis for several additional months. END NOTE 
 
5. (U) Chaka inquired whether Djibouti Port is more efficient 
than Assab. Abar called it "100 percent more efficient" 
because the depth of the channel allows for direct 
off-loading. In addition, Abar said, pilfering is much lower 
at the Djibouti Port than at any other port in the region. 
Most pilfering is plywood and small quantities of milk or 
vegetable oil rather than valuables, he said, and in 30 years 
the port has never had a container disappear. This is due in 
part to the physical security measures taken by the Port 
Authority, but primarily to the small size of Djibouti and 
the close knit social fabric which makes property crime rare 
and easy to detect. In addition, Abar said, Djibouti Port is 
cheaper than Aden, Assawa, Jeddah and Port Sudan, primarily 
because its tariffs are the lowest in the region. 
 
6. (U) Marsh asked about the port's capacity. Abar replied 
that it was currently at 6 million tons per year and has the 
potential for 12 million tons per year. The future of the 
port lies in trans-shipment, he said, a process where a large 
shipment of containers are sent to Djibouti to be split up 
and sent in smaller quantities to other countries via air, 
land or sea. Even more room will be available once the port's 
three oil companies move to the new Dorale Port sometime this 
year or next. In addition, Abar expects increased efficiency 
now that the Port is under a 25 year operating contract with 
Dubai Ports International (DPI). DPI also has operating 
contracts for the new Port of Dorale, the Ambouli 
International Airport and the Djiboutian customs office. 
 
7. (U) On security features at the current port, Abar said 
the port recently invested  US$350,000 in new access control 
equipment and budgeting systems. In addition, the port has 
reinforced access fencing, cut down to one monitored entry 
and one monitored exit point, eliminated commercial business 
such as restaurants inside the port, assumed direct control 
over its security personnel rather than using national 
police, established barriers for ships and requires a 
declaration of security from every vessel entering the port. 
The port is certified IMO compliant, he said and employs 
1300, 155 of which are security personnel and 20 of which are 
expatriates from DPI. The port has its own training center on 
site. Abar said that although the port is very secure, it 
would be even safer with training by the U.S. Coast Guard in 
new security methods. 
 
8. (U) Staffel Chaka also attended a dinner at the 
Ambassador's residence the night of March 31. Conversation 
focused on the need for vocational training to improve 
Djibouti's labor pool in preparation for the new port. It was 
also noted that the high cost of telecommunications is a 
hurdle to attracting international business investment. The 
dinner ended with the lively discussion of female genital 
mutilation, which some guests (of both genders) insisted was 
primarily a "female issue," driven by women's desires to 
follow tradition. Others argued that if men took a stand by 
prohibiting infibulation of their daughters and allowing 
their sons to marry non-infibulated women, women's insistence 
on the practice would also change. 
9. (SBU) Biographic information on several invitees: 
 
- Zeinab Kamil Ali currently occupies the position of the 
Director of the Djibouti Free Zone, which was inaugurated in 
2004. Prior to taking on this post, she worked at the Office 
National des Eaux de Djibouti (ONED, the National Water 
Authority) as Chief of Administrative Service, Legal Counsel 
to the Director of ONED, and then Assistant Director of ONED. 
Ms. Ali has a degree in law and is very active in human 
rights and women's issues. In September 2004, she was 
sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Djibouti to participate in a 
special International Visitor's Program on Citizenship funded 
with money from the East Africa Counter Terrorism Initiative. 
Ali speaks French, English and Somali and has an Afar parent. 
Ali is open and  opinionated and some rumors place her as the 
next Minister of Women. 
 
-- Ali Mohamed Kamil is the Director of Employment within the 
Ministry of Labor, where he has worked for 14 years. Prior to 
his employment with the Ministry, he spent 6 years as 
Director of the National Institute for Public Administration. 
Mr. Kamil holds a Master's Degree in Economics and Business 
Administration and attended school with Ms. Ali. He was by 
sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in Djibouti to participate in 
an International Visitor's Program on Organized Labor in 
August 2004. He speaks French, Afar, Somali and English. 
Kamil is somewhat quiet, but reflective and frank when he 
does share his thoughts. He has an excellent grasp on the 
current labor situation in Djibouti and how it will need to 
change to aid future economic prosperity. 
 
-- Youssouf Moussa Dawaleh is in his second term as a member 
of the Djiboutian National Assembly and an active member of 
the business community as head of the Grand Pecherie (Big 
Fish Market) as well as co-owner of the Djiboutian Maritime 
Management and Investment Company (DMMI), which manages 
Djibouti's fishing port. Dawaleh is the Permanent 
Representative for African-Caribean-Pacific-European 
Countries (ACP-EU) within the National Assembly. He is also 
Vice President of the Finance Commission for ACP country 
issues, a member of the National Assembly's full Finance 
Commission, Vice President of the Eritrean-Djiboutian 
Parliamentarians Committee, and a member of the 
Djiboutian-American Parliamentarians Committee. In his first 
term in the National Assembly, he served as Vice President of 
the Commission for Production and Exchange and a member of 
the Commission for Social Development and Environmental 
Protection. Dawaleh and his partners at DMMI are currently 
upgrading the fishing port and building production and export 
capacity of the fishing industry in Djibouti. His eventual 
hope is to export Djiboutian fish to Europe, the U.S. and 
Gulf countries. He speaks French, Somali and English. 
Youssouf is politically sensitive and, although young and 
educated, somewhat traditional in his views. 
 
-- Simon Mebrathu is currently Director of External Financing 
in charge of public investments and external debt management 
in the Ministry of Finance. Prior to serving in this 
position, Mr. Mebrathu was advisor to the Minister of Finance 
and the Project Manager for the Technical Assistance for 
Economic Reforms. He was also an advisor to the Minister of 
Commerce and manager of the Private Sector Promotion Project 
financed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). 
Mr. Mebrathu also taught Accounting and Commercial Law at the 
La Glavere Training Center in Tours, France and Company 
Accounting and Systems to local bank employees. He holds 
Associate's, Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Social and 
Economic Administration with concentrations in Commercial Law 
and Management, all from the University in Tours, France. 
Mebrathu also earned a post graduate degree in African 
Studies, with a focus on political science, from the 
Institute of Political Studies in Bordeaux. He speaks French, 
English and Arabic. 
 
Other Meetings for Staffdel Chaka: 
 
--Mohamed Ali Hassan is the Director of Bilateral Relations 
at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He earned Bachelor's and 
Master's degrees in Anglo-American studies from the 
University of Paul Valery in Montpelier, France. His 
diplomatic studies were done at the International Relations 
Institute in Yaounde, Cameroon. Hassan has attended 
professional training courses all over the world, including 
China and the United States, where in February 2004 he 
attended the Department of State/Department of Defense Senior 
Leader Seminar at the African Center for Strategic Studies. 
In June 2002, he was by sponsored by the U.S. Embassy in 
Djibouti to participate in an International Visitor's Program 
on U.S. Foreign Policy Toward Africa. Prior to taking his 
current job, he worked in the International Organizations 
Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the 
Africa/Asia ad Pacific division in the Department of 
Bilateral Affairs. Hassan currently is co-chairman of the 
Djibouti-France, Djibouti-Japan, Djibouti-Ethiopia and 
Djibouti-Eritrea Bilateral Relations Committees. He is also a 
member of the China/Africa Economic Forum Committee and the 
U.S. Military Assistance Committee. He is chairman of the 
National Bilateral Relations Follow-up Committee. He speaks 
French, English, Somali, Arabic and Afar and has an Afar and 
a Arab parent. He is politically savvy and seems well-trusted 
within the current administration. 
 
-- Commandant Mohamed Moussa Abar has been the Harbor Master 
and Director of Maritime Security at the Port of Djibouti 
since 1995. He previously worked as assistant to the Harbor 
Master, a full tonnage pilot, a sea trials pilot, a Maritime 
Institute deck officer and the tower controller for the Port 
of Djibouti. He has attended several international port 
management port courses and conferences in places such as New 
Orleans, Haifa, Marseilles and Tokyo. He speaks French, 
Somali, Amharic and English and seems very cosmopolitan and 
pro-American. 
RAGSDALE