00:05For Jay Hirani, a sales manager at Prima Rose Flowers in Kenya, Saturday, February 28th
00:13begun like no other.
00:15We sent our shipments on Saturday night for Sunday departures from JKIA.
00:21The company exports 80% of its porges to the Middle East.
00:26But that Saturday was also the day the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran.
00:33Almost immediately, airspace across parts of the Middle East closed, triggering mass
00:38flight cancellations and disruptions.
00:41Come Monday, all of our customers, all the freight agents, they ask us to collect the
00:47boxes back from the airport.
00:49Many African businesses are already feeling the impact of the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran.
00:54The conflict is already disrupting key energy and shipping corridors and raising concerns
01:01of a supply chain stability on the continent.
01:04We are about to start bracing ourselves for either very high fuel costs and shortages of
01:09fuel.
01:10Maritime expert Elijah Mbaru says the conflict has disrupted transport through the Strait
01:16of Hormuz, the narrow passage between Oman and Iran that carries a significant share of
01:21the world's shipments.
01:23The effects could ripple far beyond the Gulf.
01:26The cost of insurances will go high.
01:29The cost of fuel will go high automatically.
01:33And the detours of ships will automatically take place.
01:37And this will add a 10-day voyage.
01:39But with supply chains now under strain, local exporters like Prima Rose Flowers are scrambling
01:45to find alternative markets.
01:47We have to try and find a way how we can divert our produce to other countries.
01:51And as tensions persist, Africa's exporters may find themselves on the front line of a conflict
01:58unfolding thousands of kilometres away.
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