On a continent where transport can account for up to three-quarters of the final price of a product, logistics remains a daily challenge for companies. Customs complexity, slow operations, limited visibility on flows are all obstacles that hinder supply chains, especially for African shippers. To overcome them, technology startups are multiplying innovations. And some seasoned players, such as Africa Global Logistics, choose to support this dynamic from the inside, relying on their operational roots.
Even if they attract less capital than in the boom period of 2021, logistics start-ups continue to innovate. According to Partech, they raised $41 million in 2024. They respond to a growing demand, that of better coordinating the flow of goods, securing routes, speeding up deliveries. In other words, making long-fragmented supply chains more fluid.
Very concrete challenges for shippers
On some African routes, it is sometimes faster to bring a container from Asia than to move one between two regional capitals. The cost of transport, load breaks and formalities slow down distribution, especially in cross-border corridors.
Technology doesn't solve all of these friction points, but it does help create bridges between the different links in the supply chain. Some startups have developed platforms that streamline long-distance transport operations, while others are investing in the last-mile segment.
For shippers, these innovations are a game-changer. They offer more transparency on the progress of flows, reduce empty runs, and make it possible to anticipate delays or losses. However, these solutions must be interoperable and adapted to the constraints in the field.
AGL relies on a deep-rooted innovation ecosystem
It is in this spirit that the group launched Yiri, its innovation center based in Abidjan. A true logistics laboratory, Yiri connects the group's businesses with solutions from a booming African entrepreneurial fabric.
This positioning materialized through the Accelerate program, an open innovation program that supports technology startups already in the seed or growth phase. For six months, the selected companies benefit from tailor-made support, training, business mentoring, and above all the opportunity to co-develop a pilot project with AGL's operational teams.
From Alia to Paps, concrete use cases
Among the startups incubated is ALIA, a smart legal assistant that simplifies access to business law rules in French-speaking Africa. Thanks to an AI fed by OHADA jurisprudence, the solution allows SMEs to better comply with regulatory requirements. According to Aude-Ellen Coffie, co-founder and CEO of the platform, the user has the possibility to ask a question or launch a thematic search, and obtain a summary accompanied by the relevant documents.
Other examples include Paps, a Senegal-based startup with operations in Côte d'Ivoire and Benin that is positioning itself as a major player in the last mile in French-speaking West Africa. The objective is to offer a local distribution solution.
Other start-ups that have benefited from the programme include Eazy Chain, a Togolese start-up that is developing a feeder ship service to connect secondary ports to major hubs on the West African coast. "Thanks to this program, we will benefit from AGL's strategic resources and support to realize this vision and sustainably transform the African maritime sector," says Wilfried Dabire, founder of the startup
Behind several of these projects, a common thread emerges: to meet concrete operational needs identified in the field, by putting technology at the service of logistics fluidity.
Tomorrow's African logistics, more connected and inclusive
The gradual implementation of the Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) is bringing new needs to the fore. Logistics corridors are set to become structuring axes, but their effectiveness depends on the ability to interconnect systems, harmonise data formats and secure goods.
In this context, startups are not only vectors of innovation, but they can also become growth drivers if they manage to integrate into regional value chains. In this area, AGL also intends to use its field experience to offer a network conducive to the experimentation of solutions on a larger scale.
The continent's logistics transformation will not be done against startups or without traditional logisticians. It will require the ability to bring together expertise: that of truckers, shippers, port agents, customs officers and developers.