The progress made in starting to shape a draft comprehensive IMO strategy on reduction of GHG emissions from ships has been reported to the COP 23 climate change conference, meeting in Bonn, Germany (6-15 November) by IMO’s Stefan Micallef. He reported that more than 2,600 ocean-going ships have now been certified to the mandatory energy efficiency design requirements, which have been in force since 2013. The significant global reduction in the sulphur content of the fuel oil used by ships from 1 January 2020 is expected to contribute further to the reduction of GHG emissions from ships, through the anticipated resulting uptake of alternative fuels. IMO’s capacity-building and technical cooperation work was also highlighted, including the UNDP-GEF-IMO global energy efficiency project (GloMEEP) and the European-Union funded maritime technology cooperation centres network (GMN) project. Mr. Micallef was reporting on IMO’s work to the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA 47).