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Seaports and their efficiency remain essential for the success of international trade globally. Notwithstanding this outcome, there is no empirical evidence on how seaport efficiency affect trade performance in Africa. This paper presents an empirical evidence of the effects of seaport efficiency on trade performance in Africa. To do so, we use data on 33 African countries for the period 2006 to 2018 and employ the gravity model for the empirical analysis. The results show that seaport efficiency enhances trade performance in Africa; the greater the level of seaport efficiency, the larger the extent of trade performance. Based on this finding, it is recommended that policy reforms that improve the efficiency of seaports in Africa should be targeted by policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ports play a significant role in facilitating international trade and economic development, serving as vital gateways for the movement of goods across the continent and beyond. As global trade volumes continue to rise, efficient port operations hold the potential to not only enhance economic growth but also contribute significantly to job creation across various sectors of the economy. This paper examines the impact of container port throughput on employment in Africa and further tests whether causality runs from employment to container port throughput. To do so, we use a sample of 27 African countries with seaport and data spanning the period from 2010 to 2020 for the analysis. The system- Generalized Method of Moments (SGMM) estimation technique is used as the estimation strategy. We use service, industrial, and total employment percentages of the total population as proxies for employment while annual container throughput measured in Twenty foots Equivalent Units (TEUs) is used as an indicator for port throughput. Based on the empirical results, we establish a positive significant effect of port throughput on employment in Africa. We further show that bidirectional causality exists between port throughput and employment in Africa. Following these findings, we recommend policies that increase port throughput in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seaport terminals are major facilitators of international trade. One issue that is very crucial to the performance and survival of seaport terminals is the quality of service provided. However, in order to enhance the quality of service provided at these terminals, it is important to know customers' expectations and perceptions about service quality. Notwithstanding, very little is known about customers' expectations and perceptions on the service quality of seaport terminals in Africa. This paper therefore provides a comparative analysis of service quality of Nigerian seaport terminals with the aid of the gap score technique of the service quality (SERVQUAL) model. It is found that generally, all the selected terminals studied have low service quality. With regard to the average gap score per service quality dimension for all the selected terminals, transparency has the best service quality (least gap score) whiles responsiveness has the least service quality (highest gap score). The implication is that, in seaport terminals quest to enhance service quality, more attention should be paid towards enhancing responsiveness by providing prompt services, helping customers and informing them when exactly services will be performed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]