the UNCTAD is defining a system of appraisal of the performances of the ports



The Conference of the United Nations on the Commerce and Development (UNCTAD) has announced that the number of the world-wide ports that are contributing to the collection project and elaboration of data on the ports that is activated in 2013 from the organism of the UN with the objective of a better understanding of the harbour field and with the conviction is gone up to 42 that a better analysis of the data of the traffics and the harbour performances will be able to lead to better performances of the ports.

"So that the ports at best work - it has observed Mark Assaf, project manager near the UNCTAD - the harbour leaders must be able to estimate own performances on the base of an immense range of indicators. However there is a deficiency of reliable data that can be used from the managers". Assaf has found that the majority of the data is aggregates on a national level and not at the level of the single ports and that, with the exception of the container, the managers of the ports exist little total standards "- he has explained - want to know if they can trust itself the data and if they are confronting given comparable. This is the reason for which, until by the first day, we are assured that the ports involved in the project accepted the indicators, the units of measurement and the methodology".

Currently the project is based on 23 indicators on the stability financial institution, the working productivity and on the operating efficiency, between which the entrances generated for dependent, mean time of attended of the ships and the tonnage managed for hectare of land. The UNCTAD has specified that the indicators allow to define a card of appraisal (Port Scorecard Performance) of a port that, for example, can demonstrate that the handling rates are competitive regarding the container but it they are not for the solid bulk, while for another port the card can evidence that the costs of labor are competitive but that this has had to the low wage levels rather than to a greater productivity more.

"This type of detailed analysis of the performances that the appraisal card allows - has emphasized Hector Miole, assistant general manager near the Philippine Ports Authority, agency that participates to the project - is extremely useful in order to characterize weakness of our activities to the aim to develop strategic improvements constantly. As a nation isolana - Miole has remembered - we manage hundred of ports and all do not supply the same information. Therefore the project is helping also to harmonize the data".