A new report launched today by the World Bank and the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) shows that better digital collaboration between private and public entities across the maritime supply chain will result in significant efficiency gains, safer and more resilient supply chains, and lower emissions.
Maritime transport carries over 90% of global merchandise trade, totalling some 11 billion tons of cargo per year. Digitalising the sector would bring wide-ranging economic benefits and contribute to a stronger, more sustainable recovery.
Accelerating Digitalization: Critical Actions to Strengthen the Resilience of the Maritime Supply Chain describes how collaborative use of digital technology can help streamline all aspects of maritime transport, from cross-border processes and documentation to communications between ship and shore, with a special focus on ports.
The Covid-19 crisis has evidenced a key benefit of digitising waterborne and landside operations, meeting the urgent need to minimise human interaction and enhance the resilience of supply chains against future crises.
“In many of our client countries, inefficiencies in the maritime sector result in delays and higher logistics costs, with an adverse impact on the entire economy. Digitisation gives us a unique chance to address this issue,” said Makhtar Diop, World Bank vice president for Infrastructure. “Beyond immediate benefits to the maritime sector, digitalisation will help countries participate more fully in the global economy, and will lead to better development outcomes.”
IAPH managing director of policy and strategy, Dr Patrick Verhoeven, added: “The report’s short- and medium-term measures to accelerate digitalisation have the proven potential to improve supply chain resilience and efficiency whilst addressing potential risks related to cybersecurity. However, necessary policy reform is also vital. Digitalisation is not just a matter of technology but, more importantly, of change management, data collaboration, and political commitment.”
Although the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has made it mandatory for all its member countries to exchange key data electronically (the FAL convention), a recent IAPH survey reveals that only a third of over 100 responding ports comply with that requirement. The main barriers to digitalise cited by the ports were the legal framework in their countries or regions and persuading the multiple private-public stakeholders to collaborate, not the technology.
The report analyzes numerous technologies applied already by some from the world’s leading port and maritime communities, including big data, the internet of things (IoT), fifth-generation technology (5G), blockchain solutions, wearable devices, unmanned aircraft systems, and other smart technology-based methods to improve performance and economic competitiveness.
