King Abdullah Economic City, November 2020: King Abdullah Port and the General Directorate of Border Guard have announced the successful integration of the Port Community System and the Directorate’s Zawil e-portal, which offers access to various types of permits including port entry permits. The integration, which represents a continuation of the achievements of strategic public-private partnerships, was completed under the supervision and coordination of the Economic Cities and Special Zones Authority (ECZA) and will contribute to boosting the efficiency and security of operational processes and streamlining port entry procedures. The multilateral cooperation embodies the effective partnerships targeted in Vision 2030 to promote economic development, enhance services, and improve the Kingdom’s business environment.
Commenting on the achievement, ECZA Secretary-General Mr. Mohanud A. Helal stated: “We are looking forward to reaping the fruits of this integration in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) and to raising the Kingdom’s ranking on the Logistics Performance Index.” He added: “This achievement is among several others that have established the importance of KAEC as a business, industrial, and logistics hub on the Red Sea, which is embodied in the unique business model whereby the developer plays a major role in making the port a main outlet for goods entering the Kingdom and other neighboring countries. The Border Guard is responsible for governance and security while ECZA plays its regulatory and supervisory role, in addition to driving government
empowerment and forging strategic partnerships. This integration is a prominent example of the role expected of public-private partnerships in light of efforts to fulfill the aspirations of Vision 2030 and enhance the Kingdom’s regional and global role as a strategic trade pillar and route, as well as foster a business environment that attracts high-value, long term investments to KAEC.”
For his part, Acting Director-General of the Border Guard Major General Mohammad A. Al-Shehri stated: “The integrative work between the Border Guard and King Abdullah Port under the supervision of ECZA enhances the security and technology of KAEC and helps facilitate procedures for issuing port entry permits.” He emphasized that the distinguished and practical partnership applies modern technical methods.
The e-integration between the Port Community System and Zawil is based on data-sharing between both parties, as the system has been developed to allow multiple public and private systems that manage the port’s operations to benefit from the data of investors, owners, freight forwarders, transport operators, terminal operators, and port management, as well as government agencies, each in a secure manner. Meanwhile, the Border Guard is now capable of sharing data and issuing digital port entry permits easily and in a very short time.
With the announcement of the completion of the e-integration process, the port’s Smart Gate system is expected to be officially launched next year to implement security tasks by authenticating the identities of drivers, vehicles, and goods in a flexible and efficient manner. It will also reduce the effort needed to deal with trucks at the port gate by allowing or preventing their entry based on the permit issued through Zawil. The automated process will streamline the
port’s productivity, as well as reducing traffic congestion, pollution, damage, and security risks by preparing containers for delivery based on predetermined schedules.
Run by the Ports Development Company, King Abdullah Port is the first port in the region to be fully owned, developed and operated by the private sector. It has been listed as the world’s fastest-growing container port and has emerged as one of the 100 largest ports globally in less than four years of operations. In addition, 10 of the world’s largest shipping lines operate through the Port, which currently has a capacity of 6.5 million TEU and offers integrated services to importers and exporters. King Abdullah Port’s development plan is progressing at a steady pace and it is set to consolidate its place among the leading ports worldwide. Located in KAEC, a modern city with a pro-business ecosystem and infrastructure, the port’s advanced facilities and proximity to KAEC’s Industrial Valley provide world-class logistics support for clients and enable them to achieve their desired growth.
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About King Abdullah Port
Strategically located on the Red Sea coast in King Abdullah Economic City, King Abdullah Port is the Middle East’s first privately owned, developed and operated port. Occupying an area of 17.4 km2, and enjoying close proximity to the key Saudi cities of Jeddah, Holy Makkah, Al Madinah and Yanbu, as well as its direct access to extensive transportation networks that facilitates the cargo transport through the kingdom and the rest of the region, the port is making an increasingly important contribution to the Kingdom’s global role in maritime trade and logistics. Once fully completed, King Abdullah Port will be capable of handling 20 million TEU, 1.5 million CEU and 15 million tons of clean bulk cargo annually.
With state-of-the-art infrastructure and processing facilities, the world’s deepest 18-m berths, multi-level expanding operations, in addition to a fully-integrated Port Community System, the Smart Gate system and multipurpose bonded and re-export zones, King Abdullah Port reflects the important role of the private sector in realizing Vision 2030.
