The Blue Bioeconomy has become a central pillar of contemporary sustainability and development frameworks, emphasizing the efficient, responsible, and innovative use of marine and coastal resources to support economic diversification, ecological resilience, and community well-being (World Bank, 2017; OECD, 2020; FAO, 2022). Globally, governments and international organizations increasingly promote Blue Economy strategies as pathways to address food security, employment generation, climate adaptation, and technological innovation in coastal regions. Fisheries, aquaculture, marine tourism, and maritime logistics are widely recognized as key engines of growth within this paradigm, particularly in regions seeking to transition toward low-carbon and knowledge-based economies. However, while the formal benefits of Blue Bioeconomy development are well documented, significantly less attention has been given to the informal, opaque, and weakly regulated economic practices that operate beneath official policy narratives and statistical reporting systems.

Across many marine economies, these “hidden currents” take the form of informal market behavior, unreported transactions, institutional leakage, and financial opacity that distort sectoral performance and undermine governance effectiveness (APEC, 2008; FAO, 2009; Bilawal Khaskheli et al., 2023). Global evidence indicates that such practices are not marginal anomalies but systemic features of marine value chains when regulatory capacity, enforcement consistency, and transparency mechanisms are insufficient (FAO, 2001; Cheung, 2013; Davidson et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2024). In fisheries, discrepancies between reported and actual catch volumes have been widely documented, often exceeding 20–30% in some regions, with implications for stock assessments, conservation planning, and revenue collection (Gallic and Cox, 2006; Cheung, 2016). Similarly, in coastal tourism and maritime logistics, cash-based transactions, unlicensed operations, and fragmented oversight can result in significant financial leakage and weak accountability. These shadow practices undermine fair competition, disadvantage compliant operators, and weaken the credibility of sustainability-oriented marine policies.

Within the Arabian Gulf, and particularly in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, the relevance of these hidden dynamics is intensifying. The Eastern Province represents one of the Kingdom’s most strategically significant coastal regions, hosting major fisheries, expanding aquaculture ventures, rapidly growing marine and coastal tourism, and globally connected ports and logistics hubs. Together, these sectors underpin national food security, employment, and regional trade flows, and they form a critical component of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda for economic diversification and sustainable development (Saudi Vision, 2016; GCC, 2024). At the same time, the pace of sectoral expansion has often outstripped the evolution of integrated governance, monitoring, and reporting systems. Regional studies and Gulf-based marine experts have repeatedly highlighted concerns regarding fragmented institutional mandates, uneven enforcement capacity, and limited data transparency, all of which create structural conditions that enable informal market behavior and underreporting (Al-Yamani et al., 2007; Burt, 2014; Alhowaish, 2025).

Understanding these hidden financial and institutional dynamics is critical because their consequences extend far beyond immediate revenue losses. Unreported transactions distort market competition, undermine compliance incentives, weaken fish stock assessments, and reduce the effectiveness of conservation and spatial planning efforts (Drammeh, 2000; Gallic and Cox, 2006; Bilawal Khaskheli et al., 2025). They also erode trust between regulators, industry actors, and coastal communities, thereby weakening governance legitimacy. In emerging economies, where regulatory frameworks and monitoring technologies are still evolving, such distortions complicate evidence-based policymaking and reduce the effectiveness of strategic national initiatives. For Saudi Arabia, which places strong emphasis on transparency, digital transformation, and high-value diversification under Vision 2030, informal marine economic practices represent both a governance risk and a missed opportunity for sustainable growth.

Despite the growing recognition of these challenges, empirical research on informal market behavior and financial opacity in Saudi Arabia’s marine sectors remains limited. Existing studies in the Kingdom and the wider GCC have predominantly focused on environmental pressures, sectoral development opportunities, or institutional constraints within the Blue Economy (Sheppard and Loughland, 2002; Humood, 2013; Alhowaish, 2016; Robitzch et al., 2023). Much less attention has been paid to the underlying economic behaviors that shape how value is generated, reported, and distributed within marine value chains. In particular, no prior study has systematically examined how unreported transactions, sectoral economic pressure, and institutional weaknesses interact across multiple Blue Bioeconomy sectors in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province using a large, stakeholder-based dataset.

This study addresses these gaps by examining the hidden currents of marine economic activity through a mixed-methods assessment of stakeholder perceptions. Drawing on survey data from 404 respondents representing government agencies, private firms, non-governmental organizations, academia, and coastal communities, the research seeks to identify which Blue Bioeconomy sectors are perceived as most vulnerable to informal market behavior; to analyze the institutional, economic, and cultural drivers of underreporting; and to assess how stakeholder characteristics and governance perceptions shape concerns about financial leakage. By integrating quantitative and qualitative evidence, the study provides a holistic understanding of the informal forces shaping marine economic systems and offers policy-relevant insights to support Saudi Arabia’s transition toward transparent, sustainable, and innovation-driven Blue Bioeconomy governance.

The remainder of this manuscript is structured as follows. Section 2 reviews the global and regional literature on Blue Bioeconomy governance, shadow economic practices, and financial leakage. Section 3 outlines the methodological framework. Section 4 presents the empirical results. Section 5 discusses the findings in relation to existing literature and policy debates, while Section 6 and 7 concludes by highlighting key implications and directions for future research.

The study adopted a mixed-methods research design to investigate the drivers and dynamics of unreported transactions and financial leakage within the Blue Bioeconomy of Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. Mixed-methods approaches are increasingly used in marine governance and coastal policy research because they enable a deeper synthesis of measurable statistical trends with contextual, experience-based insights from stakeholders (Creswell and Plano Clark, 2018). In this study, quantitative components provided evidence of how governance quality, sectoral pressures, and environmental constraints align with stakeholder perceptions of financial opacity, whereas qualitative components illuminated narratives and mechanisms underlying shadow economic activities. This integrative design ensured that the study could address sensitive economic behaviors that are not easily captured through direct observation or financial auditing.

A structured questionnaire served as the primary data collection instrument, specifically developed to capture relationships across governance effectiveness, sectoral opportunities, environmental pressures, transparency culture, and community involvement. The instrument combined Likert-scale items, nominal categorical questions, and open-ended responses to allow both structured quantification and in-depth elaboration of experiences and perceptions. This design allowed for methodological triangulation, enhancing both reliability and validity by enabling convergent interpretation across numerical and narrative data sources (Tashakkori and Teddlie, 2010). Because unreported transactions are inherently sensitive, the study used proxy variables, such as perceived enforcement strength, governance clarity, and sectoral risk, to infer hidden financial behaviors, consistent with global studies using perceptual data to assess shadow economies (Berkes, 2015; Haenlein, 2017; Lubchenco and Haugan, 2023; Jolliffe and Jolly, 2024).

Sampling followed a purposive strategy, targeting individuals across government agencies, private sector organizations, NGOs, academic institutions, and coastal communities who directly or indirectly interact with fisheries, aquaculture, marine tourism, maritime logistics, or coastal governance systems. A total of 550 individuals were invited to participate, reflecting the need to include stakeholders with practical relevance and knowledge of sectoral operations and governance frameworks (Palinkas et al., 2015). Of these, 404 respondents completed the survey, yielding a 73.5% response rate, well above the minimum requirement based on Cochran’s (1977) formula for a 95% confidence level and 5% margin of error. Similar response rates are reported in Gulf-region governance literature (Al-Yamani et al., 2007; Humood, 2013; Al-Oufi et al., 2000; Elmahdy et al., 2022; Alqattan, 2024; Alhowaish, 2026), reinforcing the robustness of the sample for quantitative and inferential analysis. Respondents represented key stakeholder groups and geographic clusters across Dammam, Khobar, Jubail, Qatif, Ras Tanurah, and Khafji, ensuring a broad and diverse foundation for analysis (Figure 2).

The questionnaire was structured into six thematic sections aligned with the study’s conceptual framework. The first section captured demographic and professional attributes, including stakeholder category, age, education, region, and gender. The second section measured awareness and perceived importance of Blue Bioeconomy concepts. The third and fourth sections examined sectoral opportunities and institutional/environmental constraints, particularly items Q9 and Q10, which later served as core inputs for factor analysis of institutional weakness and sectoral economic pressure. The fifth section assessed community participation and transparency culture, while the final section captured qualitative narratives of unreported transactions, governance failures, and informal economic practices. A pilot test with 30 participants, comprising academics, regulatory officials, and coastal residents, verified clarity, cultural appropriateness, and sensitivity of wording, with refinements made following standard instrument-development guidelines (Bryman, 2016).

Data collection was conducted over a six-week period between October and November 2025 using a hybrid model that combined online distribution and targeted in-person outreach. Digital dissemination occurred through institutional e-mail lists, social media networks, and professional associations, while in-person surveys were conducted during community events, industry workshops, and university seminars. This approach helped address the digital divide and ensured that small-scale fishers and coastal community members, who are often underrepresented in online surveys, were adequately included. Participation was voluntary, with respondents informed of their rights, confidentiality assurances, and the absence of any requirement to disclose personal identifiers. This strategy aligns with best practices in sensitive governance research, where anonymity reduces social desirability bias and encourages more candid disclosure (FAO, 2001; FAO, 2006; Drammeh, 2000; Gallic and Cox, 2006; EJF, 2018).

Quantitative data analysis followed a multistage process conducted using SPSS v28. Descriptive statistics, including means, standard deviations, frequencies, and percentages, were computed to summarize demographic patterns and central tendencies in perception variables. Reliability analysis using Cronbach’s alpha confirmed strong internal consistency for all multi-item constructs (α > 0.78), aligning with the threshold recommended by Nunnally and Bernstein (1994). Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) using Principal Axis Factoring with Promax rotation identified three latent constructs (Institutional Weakness, Sectoral Economic Pressure, and Transparency Culture), with Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) values above 0.80 and significant Bartlett’s tests supporting sampling adequacy. Factor scores were extracted for each respondent and subsequently used as predictors in a multiple linear regression model assessing determinants of perceived financial leakage, alongside demographic and awareness variables. Regression diagnostics, including multicollinearity tests and residual plots, verified model assumptions and robustness. While Qualitative data from open-ended questions were analyzed through thematic analysis, following the six-stage process outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006). Textual responses were transcribed, coded, and categorized into higher-order themes that captured recurrent patterns related to informal fish sales, unreported aquaculture production, cash-based marine tourism, inadequate auditing mechanisms, and governance loopholes. These themes were then compared with quantitative findings to identify convergences, contradictions, and explanatory patterns. This integrative process strengthened the interpretive validity of the study by linking perceptual measures with narrative evidence, providing a more holistic understanding of financial opacity within the Blue Bioeconomy.

All procedures complied with ethical standards established by Frontiers in Marine Science and the Declaration of Helsinki. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Board at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University (Approval. Participation was voluntary, anonymous, and based on informed consent. Data were stored securely and used exclusively for academic purposes. Special emphasis was placed on confidentiality due to the sensitivity of the topics addressed, particularly regarding informal economic activities and perceptions of governance failures, ensuring that no respondent faced risk of institutional or professional repercussions.

This section presents the quantitative and qualitative findings derived from 404 valid survey responses. It includes descriptive statistics, reliability results, exploratory factor analysis, multiple regression models, sector vulnerability interpretations, and thematic insights from open-ended feedback. The results are organized into five subsections to align with the study’s analytical framework.

This study set out to examine the hidden economic dynamics shaping fisheries, marine tourism, aquaculture, and maritime logistics in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, with particular attention to unreported transactions and informal market behavior. By triangulating quantitative and qualitative evidence from 404 stakeholders, the analysis reveals how institutional weaknesses, sectoral economic pressures, and transparency culture interact to produce the “hidden currents” that drive financial leakage across Blue Bioeconomy sectors. These findings are broadly consistent with global research documenting shadow practices in marine economies, particularly in contexts characterized by rapid sectoral expansion and evolving governance systems (Sumaila et al., 2006; Cheung, 2016; Widjaja et al., 2023; Bilawal Khaskheli et al., 2023). At the same time, the Eastern Province case adds new empirical insight from a Gulf context that has been underrepresented in the international literature.

Among the three latent dimensions identified through exploratory factor analysis, Institutional Weakness, Sectoral Economic Pressure, and Transparency Culture, Institutional Weakness emerged as the most influential predictor of perceived financial leakage. Regression analysis confirms that weak enforcement, fragmented regulatory mandates, and inconsistent inspection practices significantly increase the likelihood of informal market behavior. This finding closely mirrors evidence from Southeast Asia, West Africa, and parts of the Mediterranean, where fragmented governance and limited monitoring capacity have been shown to normalize underreporting in fisheries, aquaculture, and coastal tourism (Lubchenco and Haugan, 2023; Jolliffe and Jolly, 2024). Recent studies in Frontiers in Marine Science similarly emphasize that governance fragmentation and regulatory ambiguity undermine compliance and create enforcement gaps that informal actors exploit (Aminian-Biquet et al., 2024; Bilawal Khaskheli et al., 2023, 2025). In the Eastern Province, respondents’ accounts of overlapping responsibilities among environmental agencies, fisheries authorities, municipalities, and port management bodies reflect governance challenges observed across the GCC more broadly (Burt, 2014; EU-GCC, 2021; GCC, 2024), suggesting that institutional weakness is a regional, not merely local, structural issue.

The second major finding concerns sectoral vulnerability. Fisheries, marine tourism, and aquaculture were consistently identified as hotspots for unreported transactions, a pattern that aligns strongly with global evidence indicating that high-value and culturally embedded marine sectors face heightened risks of informality when monitoring systems lag behind market growth (FAO, 2001; Drammeh, 2000; Sumaila et al., 2006; Widjaja et al., 2023). In small-scale fisheries worldwide, informal direct sales and underreported landings are often rationalized as survival strategies or culturally accepted practices (Berkes, 2015). Similar dynamics have been documented in marine tourism, where cash-based services and unlicensed operators proliferate during periods of rapid sectoral expansion (Tinch et al., 2008; Telesetsky, 2014). The Eastern Province exhibits comparable characteristics: respondents described bypassing official landing sites, unrecorded fish transfers, informal tourism services, and cash-only aquaculture sales. While maritime logistics is generally more regulated, concerns regarding undocumented service fees and inconsistent port auditing echo findings from international port governance studies highlighting how fragmented oversight can still enable financial leakage even in formally structured sectors (FAO, 2006; FAO, 2009; Wang et al., 2024).

Transparency Culture emerged as a critical mitigating factor, showing a significant negative relationship with perceived financial leakage. Higher awareness, improved access to data, trust in institutions, and stronger research support were associated with lower perceptions of informal behavior. This finding reinforces international scholarship arguing that compliance in marine sectors depends not only on enforcement capacity but also on perceived legitimacy, trust, and incentives embedded within governance systems (Berkes, 2015; EJF, 2018). Comparative studies from emerging coastal economies demonstrate that when stakeholders perceive reporting systems as opaque, punitive, or disconnected from local realities, informal practices persist despite formal regulations (Hutnikzac and Delpeuch, 2018). In this study, coastal community respondents consistently expressed greater concern about underreporting than government officials, suggesting that lived experience and day-to-day engagement with marine markets provide insights that may be underrepresented in formal administrative data. This divergence mirrors findings from participatory governance studies, which highlight the value of community knowledge in identifying informal practices and compliance gaps (Sumaila et al., 2017).

Taken together, the findings support a systems-based interpretation of informal market behavior in the Eastern Province. Rather than arising from isolated compliance failures, financial leakage emerges from the interaction of institutional gaps, sectoral economic incentives, and weak transparency norms. Weak enforcement creates opportunity structures, high demand amplifies financial incentives, and limited transparency reduces deterrence, forming a reinforcing cycle that sustains informal practices. This systems perspective aligns with global analyses of shadow economies in marine contexts (Tinch et al., 2008; Telesetsky, 2014; Sumaila et al., 2017) and is increasingly reflected in recent Frontiers in Marine Science publications emphasizing the need for integrated governance and digital monitoring solutions (Bilawal Khaskheli et al., 2023; Wang et al., 2024). In Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, the convergence of rapid economic transformation, traditional market practices, and evolving regulatory frameworks intensifies these dynamics, making the region a critical case for understanding the hidden currents of marine economies.

From a policy and strategic perspective, these findings carry direct implications for Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 objectives related to economic diversification, transparency, and sustainable coastal development. As investments in aquaculture, marine tourism, logistics hubs, and coastal infrastructure accelerate, unmanaged financial leakage poses both fiscal and governance risks. Comparative evidence from other emerging coastal economies suggests that addressing these risks requires a combination of structural and cultural reforms, including digitalized reporting systems, strengthened marine financial auditing, streamlined interagency coordination, and participatory governance mechanisms. Enhancing transparency culture through education, community engagement, and access to data can further reinforce compliance and accountability. By situating the Eastern Province within global debates on marine governance and informal economies, this study contributes one of the first empirically grounded assessments of hidden financial currents in Saudi Arabia’s Blue Bioeconomy and offers transferable insights for other rapidly transforming coastal regions.

This study examined the hidden financial currents shaping the Blue Bioeconomy in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, with particular emphasis on informal market behavior, unreported transactions, and the institutional pathways that enable financial leakage across fisheries, marine tourism, aquaculture, and maritime logistics. Drawing on a mixed-methods approach and evidence from 404 stakeholders, the analysis identified three interrelated drivers of financial opacity: Institutional Weakness, Sectoral Economic Pressure, and Transparency Culture. Among these, institutional weakness, manifested through fragmented regulatory mandates, weak enforcement, and inconsistent inspection practices, emerged as the most influential predictor of perceived underreporting, reflecting a systemic governance challenge comparable to those observed in rapidly transforming marine economies worldwide.

The findings further demonstrate that sectoral economic pressure, particularly in high-value and fast-growing industries such as fisheries and coastal tourism, contributes to the normalization of informal practices. Reported behaviors including direct fish sales, bypassing of landing sites, cash-based aquaculture transactions, informal tourism operations, and irregular port fees closely mirror global patterns documented in small-scale fisheries and tourism hotspots. At the same time, the study highlights the mitigating role of transparency culture, showing that higher levels of stakeholder awareness, community engagement, research support, and trust in institutions are associated with lower perceptions of financial leakage. This underscores that effective governance reform must extend beyond regulatory instruments to include social and cultural mechanisms that foster trust, accountability, and shared responsibility.

From a policy perspective, these findings carry direct relevance for Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which prioritizes economic diversification, institutional modernization, digital transformation, and sustainable coastal development. Addressing financial leakage within the Blue Bioeconomy requires a coordinated policy response that strengthens enforcement capacity, clarifies and harmonizes regulatory mandates, digitizes catch and revenue reporting systems, establishes dedicated marine financial auditing functions, and enhances interagency data sharing. Equally important is the expansion of participatory governance mechanisms that empower coastal communities and integrate local knowledge into monitoring and compliance systems. By illuminating the institutional and socio-economic forces shaping informal marine market behavior, this study provides one of the first empirical foundations for reforming coastal governance and improving financial transparency in a Gulf context.

Despite its contributions, this study has several limitations that open important avenues for future research. First, the analysis relies primarily on perceptual data, which are essential for revealing hidden and informal practices but do not directly measure the magnitude of unreported transactions or financial flows. Future studies could complement stakeholder perceptions with empirical approaches such as financial audits, digitized reporting records, satellite-based vessel monitoring systems, or biometric catch verification tools to quantify discrepancies between reported and actual activity.

Second, the geographic scope of the study is limited to Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province. While this region is strategically significant, coastal governance structures, ecological conditions, and sectoral dynamics vary across the Kingdom. Comparative research extending to the Red Sea coast, such as Jazan, Yanbu, Umluj, and NEOM, would enable a more comprehensive national assessment of informal market behavior and financial leakage within the Blue Bioeconomy.

Third, although the study employed robust analytical techniques, including factor analysis, regression modeling, and thematic coding, future research could adopt longitudinal designs, network analysis, or agent-based modeling to examine how informal practices evolve over time, how actors interact within shadow transaction networks, and how governance reforms influence financial behavior. Additional research is also needed to explore how gender, youth, migrant labor, and community livelihood structures intersect with informal market dynamics, particularly within artisanal fisheries and tourism micro-enterprises.

Finally, while this study emphasizes governance and transparency culture, the transformative potential of digital and emerging technologies remains underexplored. Future research should examine the role of blockchain-enabled supply chain traceability, AI-driven monitoring of fishing effort, and e-governance platforms for real-time financial auditing. These innovations hold significant promise for reducing financial leakage, improving reporting accuracy, and strengthening accountability within the Blue Bioeconomy.