Gong, Hao2024-10-162024-10-162023Gong, Hao. (2023). Assessing seaport operational efficiency: the case of South African seaports [Master’s dissertation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WireDSpace.https://hdl.handle.net/10539/41630https://hdl.handle.net/10539/41630A research project submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Management by Research (MMR). Johannesburg, 2023Along with the economic globalization development, the volume of international trade has increased tremendously. The seaport is vital in coordinating and integrating global trade activities and supply chains. This study sought to assess the efficiency of the four major South African seaports from 2016 to 2021. Along with the influencing factors and challenges analysis, appropriate recommendations were given to policymakers and port users to enhance seaport efficiency. In this study, a three-stage approach was undertaken. Firstly, the relative efficiency among the selected South African seaports was observed based on the output-oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach. Secondly, the Malmquist Productive Index (MPI) was used to indicate the efficiency changes from 2016 to 2021. Thirdly, a combined analysis of the survey and Tobit regression was performed to analyse the factors that influence the seaport efficiency of South Africa. Both secondary data and primary data were collected and analysed. In other words, a mixed method of qualitative and quantitative analysis was adapted in this study. Among all the four seaports, the port of Cape Town turned out to be a relatively more efficient seaport during the studied period. The trend of the efficiency changes of all the selected seaports was first increasing, then decreasing and then increasing, among which Port Elizabeth reached optimal efficiency in 2019. The decline in seaport efficiency was mainly concentrated between 2019 and 2020, apparently due to the impact of COVID-19. The Port of Cape Town was deemed the most efficient seaport, followed by the Port of Ngqura and Port Elizabeth, while the Port of Durban was deemed the least efficient. The scale of the seaport and advanced technology impacted the four ports differently. The Port of Durban is in relatively high demand for upgraded technology. Education level, registered capital, shipping routes, designed capacity, throughput and the economy of the port city positively affect seaport efficiency, while the population of the port city affects seaport efficiency negatively. It emerged that South African seaports' main challenges are coastal congestion, sustainability development, and balancing investment and revenue. Technical development and external competition also challenge improving seaport efficiency. One of the areas of further research could be how technology improves a specific South African seaport efficiencyen© 2023 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.DEASouth AfricaSeaport efficiencyInfluencing factorsUCTDSDG-8: Decent work and economic growthDissertationUniversity of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg