THE Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) has employed experts to teach staff and port users how to use the new automated cargo system.

KPA's managing director Abdallah Mwaruwa said the system, which is called the Kilindini Waterfront System (Kwatos) would be stable.

Mwaruwa said at a meeting of the East African Tea Traders Association (EATTA) that the specialists had been posted to the Kenya International Freight and Warehousing Association training centre to train more users.

He said when Kwato encounters hitches, KPA reverts to the old manual system in order to keep operations moving.

Mwaruwa said they had started yard reorganisation at the container terminal to create space for incoming and outgoing containers.

The chairman of EATTA, Francis Kiragu, said delays at Mombasa had slowed down delivery of tea exports on the world market.

Kiragu said their tea competes with the rest of the world. He said two more conventional cargo berths had been dedicated to handling containers.