In just a year, Danish transport group DSV has gained a solid foothold in Africa, a region in which companies need to be present in order to get a share in the high growth rates which characterize several of the continent's countries. DSV usually picks its focus areas based on where global customers seek to develop business, says Kenya-based Michael Carstensen, who is director for DSV’s development in Southern Saharan Africa.

Unlike other companies who are also in the process of establishing themselves on the African continent, buying forms a part of the strategy for DSV in Africa. There are several reasons for this, explains Carstensen over a skype call from Kenya to ShippingWatch. In 2014, the transport group acquired the private-owned company Swift Freight, of which DSV had already owned 30 percent for the two years prior.