Understanding the role of small ports in regional development dynamics: the case of Le Tréport, France
Aziz Bocary TRAORÉ, Université Le Havre Normandie, France
The role of ports in regional development is widely recognized and several academic contributions have already shown the direct and indirect impacts of seaports activities for regional development (Bottasso et al., 2014; Sakalayen et al., 2017). Indeed, ports play a crucial role in international trade because 80 % of goods around the world travel by sea and shipping companies need ports to transfer the flows from and to the hinterland (Vigarié, 1979). However, most studies focus on the largest ports (Sakalayen et al., 2016).
In our presentation, we aim to demonstrate how seaports in secondary cities in Normandy, are participating in local development. Here, we demonstrate that despite the “regional monopoly” (Bourdin & Cornier, 2015) exerted by the mega-port HAROPA (born from the merger of the three ports of Le Havre, Rouen and Paris) on a regional scale, regional ports are the “economic lungs” at the local scale. We highlight the case of the port of Le Tréport, the septentrional port in Normandy. This port is located in a city of 5 000 inhabitants. Despite its small tonnage (around 250 000 tons of goods each year), this port is crucial for the industrial activities around the city. According to the French national statistical institute, 300 people work in the industrial port area of Le Tréport. Moreover, 80 % of the port activity provides the two main industries of the city –Timac Agro and Clariant– the commodities they need for their production.
This presentation is based on Aziz Bocary Traoré’s Ph.D. dissertation entitled “regional dynamics and port dynamics: globalization and Norman ports” wherein we analyze the regional integration of ports in Normandy in a context of economic globalization and the differences between the major port and the local ports.
Mots clés : Small ports|Local development|Port strategy|Industries|Normandy
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