ADDIS ABABA, March 26 (Xinhua) -- The Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ) has registered "outstanding results" during the first quarter of 2026, as its core development indicators achieved leaping growth, amid a growing engagement of major Chinese enterprises.
In a statement issued Wednesday, the DIFTZ disclosed that in the first quarter of 2026, its core indicators such as land sales, land utilization rate, and employment promotion achieved "leaping growth, marking a robust start for the annual development."
The positive growth trajectory has "injected strong impetus into Djibouti's economic and social development, and laid a solid foundation for the upgrading of the East African trade and logistics landscape," according to the statement.
Data from the free trade zone showed that by March 2026, a total of 513 global enterprises had settled in the DIFTZ, up by 22 percent year-on-year, while the land utilization rate has reached 70 percent, rising by 22 percentage points from the same period last year.
"As Africa's largest free trade zone, the DIFTZ has become a key choice for global capital to expand to in East Africa by virtue of its geographical, infrastructure and policy advantages," it said.
"Major Chinese enterprises have settled here, including top engineering equipment manufacturers XCMG, Zoomlion and Sany Heavy Industry, leading heavy-duty truck makers such as China National Heavy Duty Truck Group, and mainstream new energy vehicle brands like BYD and Geely," it said.
Chinese enterprises hold 356,000 square meters of long-term leased land, accounting for 36 percent of its total, said the DIFTZ, adding that it will continue to act as a positive force in further deepening China-Africa cooperation.
"Going forward, the DIFTZ will continue to build itself into an East African hub for trade, logistics and export processing, improve infrastructure and business environment, deepen China-Africa cooperation and boost the integration of the East African regional economy," it said.
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