This session is prepared under the framework of the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) project on a Global Port Infrastructure Sufficiency Index (PISI) which was launched in 2019 and implemented in collaboration with the United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
The PISI is a proposed port performance indicator articulated around three main components: Punctuality, Safety and Security, and Digitalization. The presentation sets out the main findings of Phase 2 of the PISI project. Under Phase 2, the PISI concept was piloted across selected world container port terminals. The AIS data allowed for assessing Punctuality (vessel time) while the survey questionnaire focused on Safety and Security and Digitalization.
The technical report was published in November 2023 and is available at UNCTAD's website.
Programme
Moderator:
- Jan Hoffmann, Head, Trade Logistics Branch, Division on Technology and Logistics, UNCTAD
Speakers:
- Ju Dong Park, Professor of Marine Science College, Gyeongsang National University (GNU)
- Seokwoo Jake Choi, Director, Port Demand Analysis Research Division, Port Research Development, Korea Maritime Institute (KMI)
Jan joined the World Bank Transport Global Department in January 2025, as Global Lead Maritime Transport and Ports. Responsibilities include the Container Port Performance Index, the Port Reform Toolkit, and support to World Bank in-country port and shipping projects.
From 2003 to 2024, Jan worked for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), since 2016 as Head of the Organization’s Trade Logistics Branch. He developed and led technical assistance programs in trade and transport facilitation, co-authored and coordinated the Review of Maritime Transport, and initiated the Maritime Country Profiles, the International Transport Costs Data Set, and the Liner Shipping Connectivity Index.
Previously, Jan spent six years with the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago de Chile, and two years with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London and Santiago. Prior to this, he held part time positions as assistant professor, import-export agent, seafarer, translator, and consultant.
For eight years, he worked part time for the family tramp shipping business Hoffmann Shipping, based in Horneburg, Germany, with a tweendecker registered in St. Johns, Antigua and Barbuda.
Jan has studied in Germany, United Kingdom, and Spain, and holds a doctorate degree in Economics from the University of Hamburg. He is member of the boards of various journals and professional associations, and from 2014 to 2018 was president of the International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME). Dr Hoffmann has been to more than 140 countries and had his hair cut in 95. He has three sons and one wife.
Mr. Ju Dong Park has been a professor of Marine Science College at Gyeongsang National University in the Republic of Korea since 2020. Prior to his academic career, he worked as a senior researcher of Port Division at Korea Maritime Institute in ROK from 2015 to 2020.
Prof. Park went to the North Dakota State University in the United States of America for his PhD in Transportation and Logistics with specialty of Transportation Economics from 2011 to 2015 after obtaining his MS in International Transportation Management at Maritime College, State University of New York in 2010. In paricular, he was awarded the Best Paper Award from the Transportation Research Forum in 2014. Prof. Park has more than 10 years experience of research and work in the transportation sector including the collaboration with various international organizations such as UNCTAD, UN-ESCAP and APEC and furthermore he has been working with UNCTAD since 2018.
Seokwoo Choi serves as the Director of the Port Demand Analysis Research Division at the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI), a leading government-affiliated research organization under the auspices of the Prime Minister's Office of South Korea.
He earned his Ph.D. in Statistics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, specializing in mathematical statistics with a focus on quantile regression and non- or semi-parametric statistics.
Since joining KMI, Mr. Choi has spearheaded a range of research initiatives centered on port policy and operations, port demand analysis, and the national blue economy. His work is pivotal in shaping strategies that enhance port efficiency and contribute to the broader economic framework.
