What is Sea Transport?
Sea transport moves goods and services by ship, and is the best method for bulky, heavy cargo. It uses three main kinds of vessel: liners, tramps, and tankers. A shipping conference is a group of shipping companies operating in a particular trade relationship.
How Freight Rates Are Set
Carriers fix freight rates based on the destination, the weight and space occupied by the cargo, the possibility of a return load, the quantity and value of the goods, and the risk of damage. For tramp ships, rates are negotiated between the ship owner and charterer, based on supply and demand, distance, and value. For passenger liners, rates depend on the distance, class chosen, and passenger luggage.
Cameroon Shipping Line (Camship)
Established to save the country money spent on foreign shipping lines, initially government-controlled and later privatised (1996). It gives revenue to the government through taxes, transports government officials and citizens abroad, and carries government cargo at a reduced rate.
National Port Authority
A public corporation managing Cameroon’s sea and river ports — Kribi, Limbe, Garoua, and the main seaport, Douala. It controls its ports, provides safety devices for vessels, enforces traffic rules, ensures facilities like warehouses are available, and collects dues from ships, generating government revenue.
Documents Used in Sea Transport
- Bill of lading: states the terms for transporting goods, including weight, quantity, value, marks, and freight conditions.
- Consignment note: acknowledges that a seller has sent goods to a buyer through a carrier — signed by the consignee on receipt.
- Charter party: a contract hiring a ship or aircraft to a charterer, describing the goods, ports, freight, and lay days. Types include time charter (hired for a set period), voyage charter (hired for a specific voyage), and demise charter (an empty ship is hired and the charterer takes responsibility for its upkeep).
- Shipping note: a request to the port authority to load export goods, reserving space for them.
- Ship’s manifest: given by the ship’s captain to customs, listing crew, passengers, cargo, and destination.
- Bill of sight: lets an importer examine goods at the dock when information about them is incomplete.
- Dock warrant: confirms goods are held at the warehouse awaiting clearance.
- Bill of entry: provides customs officers with details of all imported goods.
Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages: cheap per unit over long distances, suits bulky cargo, offers refrigeration facilities, allows containerisation, and is unaffected by topography.
Disadvantages: very slow and rigid, affected by weather, involves heavy documentation and handling, and carries extra insurance and packing costs.
Vessels and Containerisation
Tramp ships have no fixed route or schedule, acting as “cargo taxis”. Ocean liners (cargo and passenger) run on fixed schedules and routes.
Containerisation uses large metal boxes to move goods, easing loading and unloading, speeding up port turnaround, protecting cargo, avoiding constant customs inspection, and reducing loss — though it requires expensive equipment and skilled labour.
