Economy

To build brigade at Bonaberi port: Douala Port Authority, K9 SARLU sign partnership.

by Chi Emeh
08 Jan 2026 19:53
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Officials signing partnership agreement

The Port Authority of Douala, PAD, has signed a partnership agreement with the company, K9 SARLU, to establish a brigade at the Douala-Bonaberi port.
The public-private partnership signed recently will be funded entirely by PAD’s private partner, with no endorsement or deposits from PAD or the government.

The deal was inked by PAD’s Director General, Cyrus Ngo’o, and the Director General of K9 SARLU, Serge Tsitsol. This was in a ceremony at the PAD headquarters in Bonanjo, Douala, in the Littoral Region.

According to PAD, the agreement covers the design, financing, installation, management and operation of a canine search brigade at the port, with the intention that the activity will be transferred back to PAD after establishment.

The initiative is part of a broader renovation, development and transformation programme, which has been underway at the Douala-Bonaberi port since 2016.

K9 SARLU will be responsible for implementing the canine search unit, which is intended to bolster port security functions, including detecting prohibited items, combating illicit trafficking, preventing unauthorised intrusions, and identifying stowaways.

The new brigade is to enhance the port’s attractiveness to shipowners and economic operators to help them improve the security of their goods and to international partners by ensuring them a modern and credible security environment for them and their goods.

Implemented in the form of a Build, Operate and Transfer, BOT, public-private partnership, it aims to strengthen the port security system, detection of prohibited objects, and fight against crimes and ill practices already happening at the port.

The commissioning of the brigade, as disclosed by PAD, will thus complement the already existing security arrangements, in accordance with the recommendations of the International Maritime Organisation, IMO, through the Maritime Security Committee, MSC, and the Committee for Simplification of Formality, FAL.

Beyond the immediate security risk, PAD said the partnership translates a direction to make the Port of Douala-Bonabéri a modern, safe and credible port platform capable of inspiring confidence among shipowners, economic operators and international partners.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3665 of Tuesday January 06, 2026