Whats New 2016
Minding your language
English is the language of the shipping industry and the
ability to communicate effectively in English is therefore vital to safe ship
operation and the protection of the marine environment from shipping. IMO is currently running a week-long (29 August – 2
September) training course for instructors in maritime English. more...
Keeping up with MARPOL
A training seminar on the MARPOL Convention is being held in Bangkok, Thailand (29 August to 2 September), to keep stakeholders in the region aware of the latest amendments to the convention. 48 participants from 13 countries are attending the seminar which is being hosted by the Marine Department of Thailand. more...
Marine Accident Investigators’ International Forum opens in Hamburg
A
week-long meeting (25 August – 2 September) to foster cooperation and
communication between international marine accident investigators has opened in
Hamburg. The meeting will examine the skills and tools necessary to carry out
marine safety investigations and encourage
participants to share lessons learned
from the many investigations carried out over the
years. more...
Supporting the human element
IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim has delivered the keynote
address at the International
Safety@Sea Conference in Singapore (30 August). In his address, he referred
to the central role of the human element in maritime navigation, even in the
light of new technology which is steering the industry increasingly in the
direction of “smart ships”. more...
Nigeria to train more staff on port security
A training exercise aimed at ensuring Nigeria continues its high level of compliance and implementation of the International Ship and Port Facility Security(ISPS) Code is underway in Lagos, Nigeria (29 August – 2 September). The course, organized in conjunction with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), more...
South Asian countries meet to finalize regional oil and chemical spill contingency plan
A meeting to
update South Asia’s regional plan for oil and chemical pollution preparedness
and response is underway in Male, Maldives (22-25 August). Senior officials
from Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are sharing their
national experiences and consolidating updates to the plan with a view to
finalizing it. The event includes a regional training workshop on hazardous and
noxious substance (HNS) spills preparedness and response. Moving forward, the
participants will also identify future training needs and develop a three-year
training programme to enhance the region’s spill preparedness and response
capacity. more...
South Africa workshop promotes ship energy efficiency
An IMO workshop is raising awareness of the Organization’s
regulatory regime dealing with improving energy efficiency and the control of
GHG emissions from ships. Participants from South African governmental
departments and other related bodies are in attendance at the three-day “MARPOL
Annex VI and Technology Transfer” workshop, taking place in Durban, South
Africa (23-25 August). The event is the latest in a series of workshops
organized under IMO’s GloMEEP
project, which is supporting uptake and implementation of energy efficiency
measures for shipping in developing countries. South Africa is one of the 10
GloMEEP lead pilot countries. more...
South Africa ratifies treaty covering fishing vessel safety
Efforts to increase global fishing vessel safety have received a boost with South Africa becoming the seventh State to ratify the 2012 Cape Town Agreement. The treaty, which implements the Torremolinos Protocol, covers various important safety requirements including radiocommunications, life-saving appliances and arrangements, and emergency procedures, musters and drills. The Agreement will enter into force 12 months after it has been ratified by 22 States which, collectively, have 3600 or more fishing vessels of at least 24 metres in length operating on the high seas. more...
Madagascar workshop promotes dumping of wastes at sea regulations
A national workshop promoting the treaty covering dumping of wastes at sea, the London Protocol, is being held in Antananarivo, Madagascar (11-12 August). The workshop, the first of its kind held in the country, is raising awareness of the regulatory framework provided by the Protocol. It is thereby supporting Madagascar in protecting its marine environment from the dumping of wastes and other matter at sea. more...