Evaluation of the potential for maritime cluster development in South Asia

ABSTRACTThe maritime transport sector is a crucial domestic and regional economic engine, and maritime clusters can significantly enhance business operations and a country’s economy. South Asia does not have any recognised world-class maritime clusters but shows signs of intense clustering of the maritime sector. This study is the first to investigate the potential for maritime cluster development among ports in South Asia. The study adopted the following steps to reach a consensus on the clustering potential of eleven major south-Asian ports. First, experts were asked to rate eleven major South Asian ports on factors related to maritime cluster performance given by de Langen's cluster structure–cluster governance framework. These responses were used as input in the fuzzy-Delphi method to determine the weights of the factors. The ports were then ranked using the TOPSIS method based on their performance on these factors, which permitted an analysis of the long-term clustering potential of the evaluated South Asian port cities. The top three ranked ports were JNPT Mumbai, Port of Malé, and Port of Kolkata, offering valuable insights for port authorities, stakeholders, and policymakers to optimize resource usage and alleviate bottlenecks in South Asian maritime cluster development.KEYWORDS: South Asian maritime portsSouth Asian maritime clustersFuzzy Delphi techniqueclustering potentialmaritime cluster potentialSouth Asian seaports Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationNotes on contributorsGupta Kapil VinodKapil Vinod Gupta is a PhD student in the area of Operations and Technology Management at ABV- Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Gwalior, India. He is a Mechanical Engineering graduate and has rich work experience as a marine engineer in the maritime shipping industry.Gyan PrakashGyan Prakash is Professor of Operations and Technology Management at ABV-Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, India, and his research areas are supply chain management, service operations and public management. He has published in journals such as Production Planning and Control, International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, Journal of Health Management, International Journal of Healthcare Management, TQM Journal, International Journal of Intelligent Enterprise, International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management, International Journal of Healthcare Quality Assurance, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Public Management Review, Journal of Advances in Management Research, IIMB Management Review, Productivity, Journal of Indian Business Research, IIM Kozhikode Society and Management Review, etc. Gyan Prakash can be contacted at: gyanprakasha@yahoo.com.