Port administration : public versus private sector

Many governments have begun to deregulate economic activities and decentralize decision making, with the objective of increasing financial viability and productive efficiency in the public sector. In this context, governments worldwide are presently reformulating the way they control, regulate, and manage ports, with the general principle of reducing direct intervention. Recently, the trend has been to encourage decentralization and the privatization of port activities. When considering port reform, there are three institutional issues which must be examined: the role of the national port authority, the role of the local port authority, and the role of the private sector.