DHL Group has announced a €300+ million planned investment in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), reaffirming its long-term commitment to a region of growing strategic importance in global trade. The multi-year initiative will be deployed across DHL Express, DHL Global Forwarding, and DHL Supply Chain to expand infrastructure, enhance service capabilities, and unlock opportunities for businesses across key sectors, including e-commerce, perishables, energy, and life sciences & healthcare.
Africa’s trade opportunity is rising as regional integration gathers pace. The African Continental Free Trade Area is creating a continental market that can deepen intra-African commerce and open new corridors with the rest of the world. Progress depends on continued improvements in infrastructure and trade facilitation, but cross-border flows have remained resilient and African enterprises are increasingly connecting to global value chains.
According to the latest update of the DHL Global Connectedness Tracker, Sub-Saharan Africa led all world regions in the first half of 2025 with a 10% year-on-year increase in trade value (in current US dollars), ahead of North America at 7% and South & Central America, Caribbean at 5%. Current forecasts as of September 2025 indicate the region’s trade volume will grow by an average of 4.3% per year from 2025 to 2029, the second-fastest globally behind South & Central Asia.
“Africa is at a pivotal moment in its trade journey,” said CEO of DHL Express, John Pearson. “Despite global volatility, the continent continues to show resilience and momentum. Our investment reflects confidence in Africa’s trajectory and DHL’s commitment to enabling the trade flows that drive inclusive growth. By strengthening our network and capabilities, we aim to make it easier for African businesses, from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to large corporates, to compete on the world stage.”
Across DHL Express, the investment will include upgrading gateways, adding aviation uplift and extending time-definite coverage into second cities that are emerging as demand centres under AfCFTA. As the only integrator with a dedicated air network in Sub-Saharan Africa, Express will link these cities more tightly to Africa–Europe and Africa–Asia lanes, building on recent growth in Ethiopia and Nigeria.
CEO, DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa, Hennie Heymans, said: “Our focus is to be closer to customers and make cross-border shipping simpler and more reliable. As trade expands, businesses are asking for predictable transit times, consistent delivery performance and support that understands local conditions. By raising the bar on service and proximity, we will help more African companies trade efficiently and compete on a bigger stage.”
DHL Global Forwarding will focus its investment on strengthening key industry solutions that are driving Africa’s trade growth. The division is expanding its capabilities in energy and industrial projects, supporting Africa’s role in the global energy transition; enhancing cold-chain and perishables logistics for agriculture and horticulture exporters; and scaling its expertise in life sciences and healthcare with specialized temperature-controlled transport. These enhancements build on DHL’s established freight forwarding network and customs expertise across major African trade lanes connecting the continent with Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Middle East & Africa, Amadou Diallo, added: “Customers are navigating shifting trade patterns and tighter regulatory requirements, so reliability and visibility matter more than ever. We are strengthening forwarding solutions with deeper local expertise and enhanced digital tools, giving clients clearer control of their shipments from origin to destination. The goal is straightforward: keep goods moving predictably and help customers capture growth where demand is emerging.”
DHL Supply Chain will add capacity and transport-led solutions with a clear focus on the transporter sector and life sciences & healthcare, including additional temperature-sensitive capability to support critical healthcare flows and fast-moving fulfilment as supply chains mature, particularly as demand for third party logistics services continues to grow in the core South African market.
CEO, DHL Supply Chain Middle East & Africa, Orkun Saruhanoglu,said: “DHL Supply Chain is expanding in South Africa as the economy gains momentum and supply chains become more sophisticated. We are seeing growing demand for specialised, outsourced logistics, particularly in life sciences and healthcare and across the transporter sector. By adding capacity, strengthening transport-led solutions and applying our contract logistics expertise, we will help customers improve service quality, manage risk and scale with confidence.”
DHL is investing in programs that extend participation in trade and support sustainable growth. Through its GoTrade initiative, the company provides SMEs with training and customs expertise to access international markets. In addition, the business is piloting renewable energy and alternative fuel projects across its facilities in Sub-Saharan Africa and advancing digitalization through AI-enabled monitoring, route optimization, and digital customs tools to reduce friction in cross-border trade.
