ATO Maritime Transport Profiles
Maritime Transport Profiles
These maritime transport profiles were developed by the Asian Transport Observatory (ATO) to support a better understanding of the maritime sector in Asia and the Pacific.
Drawing from official, reputable and peer-reviewed secondary data sources, the profiles provide key insights from data and policies to enrich discussions on advancing sustainable, resilient, and efficient maritime transport systems in Asia and the Pacific.
Key Features of the Profiles
Maritime Assets and Infrastructure
- Port Infrastructure: Information on port areas and maritime infrastructure assets, providing insights into the scale and distribution of port facilities and their role in supporting trade, passenger movement, and logistics.
- Shipping and Fleet Indicators: Data on ships built by country, merchant fleet ownership, and related maritime assets, offering a view of national participation in shipbuilding, shipping services, and maritime trade systems.
- Employment and Economic Linkages: Information on water transport employment and trade-related indicators, highlighting the contribution of maritime transport to jobs, economic activity, and trade competitiveness.
Activity and Operational Trends
- Port Throughput and Activity: Tracking of container port throughput, port calls, and port activity to assess the use and performance of maritime transport systems over time.
- Freight and Trade Movements: Analysis of maritime trade mode shares, freight transport expenditure, and freight transport work for imports and exports, providing insights into the scale, cost, and structure of maritime trade flows.
- Seafarer Supply: Information on seafarer supply and related indicators, showing the role of countries in supporting the maritime workforce and global shipping operations.
Connectivity and Performance
- Shipping Connectivity: Analysis of national, port-level, and bilateral liner shipping connectivity, showing how countries and ports are linked to regional and global maritime networks.
- Logistics and Trade Performance: Indicators such as the Logistics Performance Index, trade cost, and trade openness index help assess the broader enabling environment for maritime trade and logistics.
- Port Performance: Information on container port performance and related indicators, providing insights into efficiency, reliability, and potential bottlenecks in port operations.
Environmental Impact
- GHG Emissions: Tracking of greenhouse gas emissions from shipping and related transport energy consumption, helping assess the contribution of maritime transport to national and regional emissions.
- Air Pollutants: Analysis of maritime transport-related air pollutants, including emissions covered in major international datasets, to support discussions on cleaner shipping and pollution reduction.
Adaptation and Resilience
- Climate and Disaster Risk: Information on average annual losses, port risk, and related resilience indicators, highlighting the exposure of maritime infrastructure and operations to climate and disaster risks.
- Resilient Maritime Systems: The profiles support discussions on strengthening port resilience, safeguarding trade continuity, and improving preparedness for climate-related and other disruptions.
Investments and Digitalization
- Development Financing: Documentation of development finance for ports and maritime transport, including trends in official development assistance and other public financing flows.
- Private Participation: Information on private participation in port and maritime infrastructure, showing how private investment contributes to maritime sector development.
Policy Targets and Measures
- National Policies: Analysis of maritime-related measures in key policy documents, including strategies, targets, and measures related to maritime transport activity, port development, freight movement, climate change mitigation and adaptation, logistics performance, and sustainable transport development.
