Tiryaki Agro, a Turkish agribusiness and logistics firm, is poised to become a significant international player in the Horn of Africa’s increasingly competitive port and logistics sector. This follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority (DPFZA) to explore the long-term management and operation of Tadjourah Port.
This agreement underscores Djibouti’s ongoing efforts to attract global private investment and solidify its position as a strategic maritime and logistics hub. The port overlooks the Bab el-Mandab Strait, one of the world’s busiest shipping corridors.
Under the MoU, Tiryaki Agro and DPFZA will negotiate a framework that could lead to a long-term concession agreement for Tadjourah Port’s management and operation. Before detailed negotiations and definitive agreements, both parties will conduct technical, commercial, and operational assessments.
According to DPFZA, this partnership is a significant step toward modernizing and expanding Tadjourah Port. It also aims to position Djibouti as a regional hub for trade, logistics, and agricultural supply chains serving the Horn of Africa.
The project includes substantial upgrades to port infrastructure, expansion of logistics and storage facilities, improved handling capacity for agricultural and bulk commodities, and broader investments to enhance regional trade connectivity and economic development.
Officials state that this initiative will not only strengthen Djibouti’s logistics sector but also improve food security and supply chain resilience across the wider Horn of Africa through increased private-sector participation.
The MoU also lays the groundwork for negotiating a long-term concession agreement that would formally grant Tiryaki Agro responsibility for managing and operating the port, pending successful completion of feasibility studies and negotiations.
This project builds upon an earlier partnership between Tiryaki Agro and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector investment arm of the World Bank Group.
The IFC has supported the initiative from its early stages by financing feasibility studies, strategic planning, and stakeholder engagement activities that helped shape the project.
This advisory support aims to unlock Djibouti’s potential as a strategic logistics gateway and encourage sustainable private-sector investment in transport infrastructure and agricultural trade.
“The signing of this Memorandum of Understanding marks an important step forward in our long-term commitment to Djibouti and our vision of contributing to the country’s role as a regional trade and logistics gateway,” said Süleyman Tiryakioğlu, CEO of Tiryaki Agro.
He thanked the Government of Djibouti, DPFZA, and IFC for their collaboration, expressing the company’s eagerness to advance the project’s next stages and strengthen regional trade, food security, and sustainable economic development.
DPFZA affirmed that the initiative aligns with Djibouti’s long-term vision of serving as a strategic logistics bridge connecting Africa, the Middle East, and global markets.
The Turkish company’s involvement comes months after Djibouti revealed that Ethiopia had declined an offer to take a leading role in administering Tadjourah Port.
In April, Capital reported DPFZA Chairman Aboubakar Omar Hadi stating that Addis Ababa preferred negotiating a broader corridor arrangement linked to port access rather than directly participating in the port’s administration.
Speaking to Capital, Hadi emphasized Djibouti’s continued commitment to working with Ethiopia and offering extensive facilities for Ethiopian trade.
“We are working well with the government and offering them all the facilities they need to use our ports. We are very open to Ethiopia,” he said.
Djibouti has proposed equity participation as part of its engagement with Addis Ababa. Since Eritrea’s independence in the early 1990s, Ethiopia has been landlocked, losing its direct access to the Red Sea. This issue continues to shape Ethiopian foreign and economic policy. Critics have long argued that the former Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front failed to secure sovereign or guaranteed maritime access during the negotiations surrounding Eritrea’s independence.
Today, Ethiopia is the world’s most populous landlocked country, making access to seaports a strategic national priority.
Over the past several years, Addis Ababa has intensified efforts to secure reliable maritime access, arguing that the loss of direct sea access represents a historic injustice that must be addressed through peaceful negotiations.
The debate escalated on January 1, 2024, when Ethiopia signed a controversial Memorandum of Understanding with Somaliland. This agreement sought access to a port on the Gulf of Aden in exchange for a stake in state-owned enterprises. The deal generated strong diplomatic opposition from Somalia and heightened geopolitical tensions across the Horn of Africa.
Following these developments, Djibouti proposed alternative arrangements involving access through Tadjourah Port. However, Ethiopia’s reported request for a broader corridor arrangement—including possible special transit or administrative rights—appears to have complicated negotiations.
The Tiryaki Agro agreement also reflects growing international competition among foreign investors seeking strategic positions in Horn of Africa ports.
In October 2025, Djibouti awarded a 30-year concession to Red Sea Gateway Terminal International, a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah-based Red Sea Gateway Terminal (RSGT), to operate port facilities on the Red Sea.
Saudi-backed RSGT has also agreed to participate in the operation and future development of Tadjourah Port, underscoring the increasing interest of Gulf investors in regional maritime infrastructure.
Elsewhere in the region, UAE-based DP World operates Berbera Port in Somaliland under a long-term concession agreement and continues expanding logistics facilities there.
Other international investors have expressed interest in developing and operating ports across Eritrea, Somalia, and Sudan, despite ongoing political instability and security challenges, particularly Sudan’s continuing civil war.
The rush by global operators into Horn of Africa ports is driven by the region’s strategic location along one of the world’s busiest maritime trade routes, connecting Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
Bab el-Mandab serves as the gateway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, making nearby ports critical nodes in international shipping and energy transportation.
Beyond commercial interests, Djibouti has become one of the world’s most strategically important military locations.
China established its first overseas military base in Djibouti adjacent to the Doraleh Multipurpose Port, where Chinese state-owned China Merchants Group also holds a significant ownership stake.
The United States, France, Japan, Italy, and several other Western countries also maintain military facilities in Djibouti, reflecting the country’s strategic importance for global security and maritime trade.
