The port of Cotonou has a strategic importance in the region, as it is also one of the main gateway ports for the sub-region, in particular the countries of Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali. ​ The port is the economic heart of Benin, handling an annual freight volume of around 11 million tonnes. The Port of Cotonou currently has a 546-metre quay. The 31.2-hectare container park has several modern equipment, including four quay gantries, one mobile crane, 12 RTG (Park Gantries), and 15 reach stackers. With a full container storage capacity of nearly 20,000 TEUs, it has 24-hour docking services

The aim of the sea Port expansion is to part of Benin’s larger plan to enlarge and enhance the Port of Cotonou and strengthen the country's role as a guiding force of local economic development.

• Utilizing cutting-edge climate analytics to identify and quantify the impacts of physical climate risk on the investment
• Delivering high resolution climate risks assessments, adaptation and resilience investment options to climate-proof the investment against the impacts of physical climate risks

• Renovation and deepening of the existing North dock along its 1,391-metre length (16 metres deep with a pile/sheet piling structure)
• Extension of the North dock by 214 metres (16 metres deep with diaphragm walls) and construction of a roll-on roll-off (RoRo) ramp
• Extension of the South dock by 154 metres (15 metres deep with diaphragm walls)
• Extension of the harbour basin with the creation of a rubble mound breakwater at the end of the dock;
• Dredging of all berths to 16 metres, plus maintenance dredging of the basin

• Revamped port’s infrastructure to accommodate Post-Panamax container ships as from 2025
• Enlarge and enhance the Port of Cotonou with modern facilities to accommodate 20 million tonnes
• Strengthen Port of Cotonou role as the country's a guiding force of local economic development