Study On The Export Competitiveness Of Indonesian Aquatic Products

Indonesia is an archipelago with abundant fisheries resources.Indonesia is one of the world's leading exporters of aquatic products,but Indonesia experiences various tariff,non-tariff,and administrative barriers carried out by export destination countries.Competition among other competing countries is also very tightly related to quality and quantity issues.International regulations such as the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries,which regulate the sustainability of fishery resources,the Convention on National Trade in Endangered Species(CITES)and the Vessel Monitoring System(VMS),provide for the protection of endangered animals,the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade(GATT by WTO),including the Convention on the Protection of Endangered Species The agreement on sanitary and phytosanitary measures(SPS)and the Technical Barrier on Trade(TBT by WTO)have also affected Indonesia's fish trade in the international market.The objectives of this study are(1)to analyze the market structure and competition for aquatic product in the international market,(2)analyze the comparative and competitive advantages of Indonesian aquatic product,and(3)formulate strategies to strengthen the competitiveness of Indonesian aquatic product in the international market.This research was conducted using secondary data from the Central Statistics Agency,the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries,and world data through the United Nations Comtrade.The research data was processed with Herfindahl Index(HI),Concentration Ratio(CR),Revealed Comparative Advantage(RCA),Diamond Porter Theory,and SWOT Analysis.Indonesia aquatic product is traded in three forms,namely fresh,frozen,and processed.Analysis of the market structure of aquatic product,both fresh,frozen,and processed aquatic product based on HI and CR4 values,is in a monopolistic market that tends to oligopoly which causes Indonesia's position to dominate the market,but market movements to oligopoly will only make Indonesia a market follower.This position resulted in Indonesia not being able to make decisions relating to prices or products,without first referring to the decisions of market leaders.Using Porter's diamond theory to analyze the competitiveness of Indonesian aquatic products,the results show that Indonesian aquatic products have no competitive advantage.There are still many problems in the condition of factor resources(nature,manpower,science and technology,capital,infrastructure).Demand conditions at home and abroad are quite good,and the existence of relevant industries and supporters is insufficient to support the state of Indonesian aquatic products.The competitive structure of aquatic products in the international market is very compact.It is related to the emergence of new competitors related to aquaculture technology.Buyers and suppliers have a high negotiating position,and competing countries constantly improve the quality and quantity of their products.The role of the government has been quite good,but it still needs to be improved in terms of improving the conditions of resource elements,which is a major problem in the development of Indonesian aquatic products.We can take advantage of existing opportunities,such as discovering the existence of aquaculture technology and free trade,to improve the competitiveness of Indonesian Aquatic Product.SWOT analysis produces a strategy that can be done,namely;(1)increasing aquatic product production by providing capital loans to fishermen for fishing activities and applying cultivation technology;(2)expanding the market by cooperating with other countries outside the main export destination countries and registering as members of world fisheries management;(3)improve the quality of fish by means of socialization of quality to fishermen and improvement of the role of quality control institutions and improvement of human resources;(4)cooperating with foreign parties;(5)make improvements to the company's fisheries management by conducting employee training on post-harvest fish handling and HACCP and improving the equipment technology used;(6)improve facilities and infrastructure by fixing the transportation system and providing supporting facilities;(7)improving national economic conditions.The competitiveness of Indonesia aquatic product needs to be improved in order to be able to compete in the international market.Companies need to improve thequality of aquatic products produced,research and development of aquaculture technology must be carried out with the initial steps to form the cultivation technology research team,and the government needs to increase fuel subsidies and establish a system integrated fisheries from upstream to downstream.Improvement of infrastructure and policies will increase the competitiveness of Indonesia aquatic product in the international market.Safeguarding water resources also need to be improved to deal with cases of theft and recording of catches must also be done well.