OCL Group is investing in an integrated digital platform, which aims to strengthen operational efficiency, governance and cargo visibility across its logistics operations, as the company prepares for its next phase of growth. Rui Rodrigues, sales and business development director at OCL Group, said the system would connect the companys commercial, operational and financial activities into a single data-driven environment, with phased implementation expected from the third quarter of 2026. This will allow us to progressively embed the system into our warehouse operations, transport coordination, border activities, port operations and ocean freight management, he said, adding that the company would in parallel continue to explore additional digital solutions to strengthen logistics coordination and market connectivity as part of its broader long-term strategy. According to Rodrigues, technology and integrated, data-driven management form a central pillar of OCLs growth strategy. Over the past year, we have been developing a proprietary, AI-enabled digital platform that will deliver full cargo traceability across our business segments from warehousing and transport coordination to port operations and freight management within a single intelligent environment, he said. By incorporating AI-driven planning and predictive analytics, the system is designed to enhance capacity optimisation, strengthen controls, reduce operational friction and enable real-time visibility for our clients, while also supporting improved coordination through integration with corridor and port systems. He said that beyond operational efficiency, the objective was to strengthen governance, compliance and risk management while ensuring full traceability of cargo flows across operational control points along the corridor. Rodrigues noted that as OCL expanded across multiple logistics segments, the complexity of coordinating commercial commitments, operational planning and financial oversight had increased significantly. While our teams have successfully managed this growth through structured manual controls, such an approach naturally limits scalability and creates exposure to inefficiencies, duplicated effort and delayed decision cycles. The platform under development is designed to address this structural fragmentation by consolidating data into a single integrated environment. The anticipated impact includes improved capacity optimisation, tighter control over resource allocation, reduced operational risk, faster reporting cycles, enhanced margin management and more accurate forecasting, he said. For our clients, this translates into greater transparency, predictability and confidence in cargo flow execution. He added that the companys operational expertise was central to the platforms development. Our teams have long managed the entire cargo process end-to- end through hands-on execution. That depth of practical knowledge understanding each step intuitively is now being embedded into the systems architecture. In that sense, technology is not replacing expertise it is codifying and amplifying it. Ultimately, the objective is to move from operational resilience to structured, data- driven scalability aligned with corridor growth, he said. A practical example lies in how we coordinate cargo flows across the Maputo Corridor. Through disciplined planning and structured data sharing across our warehouse, transport, border and port operations, as well as ocean freight bookings, we have been able to manage cargo movements with greater precision and visibility. This integrated approach has enabled improved dwell times, more efficient resource allocation and greater predictability for our clients. It has also supported significant growth in our port operations, where handled volumes increased fivefold between 2020 and 2025 while maintaining strong operational performance. The platform we are now developing will embed these coordination principles into a fully integrated digital environment. With the incorporation of AI-driven analytics, the system will further enhance predictive planning, optimise capacity utilisation and enable faster, more informed decision-making across the corridor. LV
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