Capacity Utilization in Small-Scale Fisheries: A Case of the Sultanate of Oman

The interrelated issues of capacity utilization (CU) and technical efficiency (TE) have received global importance as they relate to the problem of overcapitalization and overfishing. Given the limited research on these issues in the context of small-scale fisheries, this paper attempts to provide empirical estimates of TE and CU with particular focus on small-scale fisheries in Oman using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The output variables included aggregated catch of three fish categories namely large pelagic, demersal, and other, while the boat length, engine power and number of crews were used as input variables in the empirical analysis. The data for the year 2010 were used and 97 active fishing boats were selected for the analysis. The TE and CU estimates were generated under the assumption of constant returns to scale (CRS) and variable returns to scale (VRS). The TE estimates under both CRS and VRS assumptions indicate that about 84.5% and 79.4% of the representative boats are operating in a technically inefficient manner. In addition, the unbiased CU estimates under the same assumptions show that about 77.3 % and 82.5% of the boats are not operating at full capacity. Furthermore, the average score of unbiased CU measure suggests that the representative boats may not be using variable inputs efficiently. To gain a better understanding of harvesting operations in small-scale fisheries sector in the country, it is prescribed that the management authority should extend this study for other coastal governorates and investigate the potential causes of inefficiency to design effective management strategies.