International Journal of Scientific & Engineering Research, Volume 8, Issue 1, January-2017 1071 ISSN 2229-5518 IJSER © 2017 http://www.ijser.org Contribution to the assessment of the economic performance of container ports in the Mediterra- nean & Tangier-Med Azzelarab Zaoudi, Abid Ihadiyan, Hassane Zouiri Abstract— currently, container ports operate in a highly competitive environment. The viability of the port sector depends mainly on their degree of performance. In this context, an assessment of their performance proves to be an exam of a major consideration. This research seeks to assess the economic performance of container ports in the Mediterranean, including Tangier-Med. For this, we will apply the econometric method of Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA). The sample includes 22 container ports in the Mediterranean region. According to the SFA method, technical inefficiency domi- nates the performance models of the ports of the region. According to the parameter μ, a representation of the efficiency according to a half-normal dis- tribution falls perfectly adequate for the port industry. The impact of China's trade on the prosperity of Mediterranean ports is crucial. On the other hand, the relationship is strong between capacities - demand and efficiency in port industry. Employment and underemployment of port resources are constant- ly alternated following the expansion projects. The intensity of port technical capital is considered within the framework of the particular strategies carried out by the different ports, our research distinguishes 5 types of port strategy: leader, follower, moderation, rationalization of resources and mere attendee strategy. Index Terms— Economic Performance, Technical Efficiency, Productivity, Container port, Stochastic Frontier Analysis, Technological change, Data Envelopment Analysis ——————————  —————————— 1 INTRODUCTION urrently, container ports and terminals operate in a highly competitive environment. They are now key players in the global logistics chain and in international trade. The viabil- ity of the port sector depends mainly on their degree of perfor- mance. In this context, an assessment of their economic perfor- mance proves to be an exam of great interest. This research aims to assess the economic performance of container ports in the Mediterranean and Tangier-Med port. For this, we will apply the econometric method of Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA). 2 TERMINOLOGY Two concepts underlie the analysis of economic performance, the concept of productivity and efficiency. 2.1 Productivity The productivity is defined as the ratio of the production output on total of used factors, it reports the result obtained to the ob- served consumption of factors. So it means merely "the ratio of outputs on inputs". In economics, productivity is the ratio of output of goods or services to the quantity of inputs used (in- cluding capital and labor) to produce these goods or services. Productivity is a measure of performance. The concept of Total Factor Productivity (TFP) aims to synthesize the overall produc- tivity of the production process. It aims to measure approx- imately technical progress. Malmquist index is one of the indic- es of this measure. The notion of productivity is sometimes broad and complex considering its implications in economics and management. Although it is difficult to estimate its impact on management, several studies continue to demonstrate its positive impact on performance. Nicholas Bloom leads with his team of researchers an experience in India in which they have provided management consulting to a number of companies drawn at random and comparing the performance with a com- pany of "control" of which they did not offer this consulting service. They concluded that companies that benefited from management consulting perform better. 1 2.2 Effeciency Efficiency is a relative concept, the ability of an individual, group, or organization to achieve its goals with a minimum of waste of time and effort. Henry Mintzberg in his book reveals that "efficient management is the very essence of management". 2.3 Economic performance The performance, idem, is a very relative concept, it refers to the two previous concepts, in general, the performance, as that, refers to the concept of benchmarking, there are several me- thods and approaches to measuring economic performance. We will review the SFA and DEA method. However, there is no consensus on the concept of economic performance. In transport literature two main categories of measures are considered: productivity/efficiency and technological change (Oum, Trethways and Waters 1992). The widely exploited measures are those of linear regression, productivity index, ordinary least squares, corrected least squares (COLS), maximum likelihood, envelope data (DEA) and stochastic frontier (SFA) methods. 2.4 Data Envelopment Analysis method The DEA method evaluates the relative efficiency of compara- ble production units and generates efficiency scores based on 1 Nicholas Bloom, Benn Eifert, Aprajit Mahajan, David McKenzie and John Roberts, "Does Management Matter? Evidence from India", The Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 128, no 1, 2013, p. 1-51 C IJSER