Where ships, trucks and paperwork meet

Eleven standard trade terms published by the International Chamber of Commerce (such as EXW, FOB, CIF and DAP) that define who pays for transport, insurance and formalities, and at what point risk passes from seller to buyer. They do not transfer ownership of the goods or set the price; those are governed by the sales contract.

The document issued by the carrier for a sea shipment: it is a receipt for the goods, evidence of the contract of carriage and, in its negotiable form, a document of title. Whoever holds the original negotiable B/L (or its electronic equivalent) can claim the cargo at destination.

The Electronic Cargo Tracking Note, called Bordereau de Suivi des Cargaisons (BSC) in Côte d'Ivoire, is a mandatory electronic document that records shipment details for sea cargo bound for or leaving the country. It is administered by the Office Ivoirien des Chargeurs (OIC) and must be obtained before or at loading, or penalties and delays can apply at the port.

Customs clearance is the process of declaring goods to customs, paying duties and taxes and obtaining release so the cargo can leave the port. In Côte d'Ivoire it is usually handled by a licensed customs broker (transitaire) using the customs system SYDAM and the GUCE single window, and transit refers to goods moving under customs control to another country, such as Mali or Burkina Faso.

The work of loading and unloading ships with quay cranes, moving and stacking containers in the yard, and handing them over to trucks, rail or barges at the gate. Terminal performance is measured with indicators such as crane moves per hour, ship turnaround time and container dwell time.

Demurrage is charged by the shipping line when a full container stays in the port terminal beyond the agreed free days. Detention is charged when the shipper or consignee keeps the line's container outside the terminal beyond its free time, for example before returning the empty box.

The standard unit for counting containers and measuring ship and port capacity, based on one 20-foot container. A 40-foot container counts as 2 TEU, so a port handling 1 million TEU has not necessarily moved 1 million boxes.

The ability to know, in near real time, where goods are and what status they have (booked, loaded, discharged, cleared, delivered) across every actor in the chain. It relies on shared data such as carrier tracking events, terminal and customs systems, and GPS, and it helps anticipate delays and avoid extra costs like demurrage.