English abstract
ABSTRACT
Oman has recently joined (WTO), which opens a worldwide market for Omani fish processing companies. This offers opportunities as well as challenges as Omani exports are now facing international competition that forces local exporters to elevate competition standards. Therefore, an export oriented strategy is required to pull the whole fishery sector to meet its domestic and international requirements.
The objective of this study is to identify the key variables that affect export performance at the firm level and draw the policy implications required to develop an export strategy that will expand export market share for Omani fish exports.
The methodology adopted in this thesis is inspired from the international marketing literature and postulates that export performance is determined by both internal factors under the control of the firm and external factors, which constitute the surrounding environment of the firm
Empirically, the study investigates the link between export intensity, defined as the proportion of export sale to total sale and 4 sets of firm-level specific factors:1) firm size and competencies, 2) management characteristics, 3) management perceptions and attitude, and 4) marketing strategy.
An econometric model is estimated using data gathered through a survey on a sample of fish processing firms and in which export performance, as a dependent variable, is a function of eleven independent variables representing the firm and management characteristics as well as firm export strategies.
Results show that most variables included in the export model were found to be significant (5%-10% level) or highly significant (1% level) and can explain 92% of export performance variability (RP=92%). Among the firm characteristics, both the age of the firm and their size, measured by the number of years in business and by the number of employees respectively, had no significant effect on export performance, the negative sign on both of them suggests that small firms and younger ones have better export performance than large firms and older ones. Managers education level, work experience, commitment to exporting activities, diversification, quality, and availability of information on foreign markets are all significant variables, which is positively affecting export performance.
The results underscore the role of both the government and the private sector in enhancing export performance. The role of government as a provider of public goods is to assist local exporters by securing information on pricing, distribution channels and
the state of competition in foreign markets, but also to provide financial incentives to reduce the risk associated with diversifying export markets.
The strong link between export performance and management characteristics suggests the need for local exporters to upgrade their training programs and to target the personnel at the operational level as well as the management level. Such training should focus on export procedures and legal requirements of foreign markets.
