Unveiling the ports of potential: Measuring competitiveness in emerging south Asian maritime port clusters

Maritime clusters play a crucial role in the economic development of countries, encompassing seaports, maritime businesses, universities, and government agencies. South Asia, although lacking established maritime clusters, exhibits potential for the emergence of such clusters in its seaports. Evaluating the competitiveness of these emerging maritime port clusters is vital as it directly impacts their performance and future potential as world-class maritime clusters. However, no previous attempts have been made to measure the competitiveness of these emerging port clusters. This pioneering study addresses this gap by assessing the level of competitiveness in the emerging South Asian maritime port clusters. The research develops a competitive index using the Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) approach, identifying key factors that enhance cluster competitiveness and evaluating the competence of each port cluster across these factors. The findings indicate that Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) near Mumbai ranks as the top-indexed port cluster, followed by the cluster of Colombo and Male. This study provides a comprehensive assessment tool, identifies strengths and weaknesses, and provides actionable policy implications to enhance the competitiveness of maritime port clusters in South Asia and serves as a foundation for future research and policymaking in this field.