DHL TARGETS AFRICA’S BOOMING HEALTH SECTOR WITH €500 MILLION INVESTMENT

Logistics Giant Bets on Growing Pharmaceutical Demand with specialized warehousing and tracking systems tailored to the healthcare sector.

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Annette Naude, DHL’s Head of Healthcare for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA).
Annette Naude, DHL’s Head of Healthcare for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA).


Global logistics powerhouse DHL Group has unveiled plans to invest €500 million ($575 million) in the region over the next five years. The investment, which also covers the Middle East, is part of a broader €2 billion global healthcare expansion, with Africa expected to receive about 25% of the total.

Rather than merely expanding its footprint, DHL’s focus is laser-sharp: time-critical logistics for sensitive health-care commodities like vaccines, stem cells, and cryogenic materials. “We see America has come in and cut costs, but we do see other countries coming to the forefront and filling those gaps,” said Annette Naude, DHL’s Head of Healthcare for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). 

The move comes as China’s presence in Africa’s health and infrastructure sectors intensifies, with Chinese investors increasingly active in local projects. “I went to China and met with several investors who are going to make investments on the African continent. Chinese investment in the region is really big,” Naude added.

DHL already operates major logistics hubs in South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia. The expansion will build on these foundations with specialized warehousing and tracking systems tailored to the healthcare sector. This includes ultra-cold storage capabilities and serialization technologies to ensure full traceability of medical products from manufacture to patient.

“When a doctor issues medicine at the bedside of a patient, he has to trust and rely on the network that medicine has been transported through,” Naude said

The African pharmaceutical market is expected to reach $33.8 billion by 2030, according to Grand View Research. DHL’s investment comes as new medical challenges and opportunities emerge, including rising demand for technologically advanced insulin products from China that offer longer-acting formulas and less frequent dosing.

In a sign of growing international collaboration, DHL and Chinese partners have jointly established a medical devices facility in Kenya, which now exports to Europe and the Middle East, a model DHL may look to replicate elsewhere.

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