Whats New 2016
Arctic indigenous leaders meet IMO Secretary-General
The safety and environmental impact of arctic shipping was
on the agenda as IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim received a delegation of
arctic indigenous leaders at IMO Headquarters, London (25 October). In the
first meeting of its kind, a wide-range of issues surrounding climate change
and the subsequent increase in number of ships operating in arctic waters were
discussed (photos). Secretary-General Lim outlined IMO’s work in this field, in the form
of IMO’s Polar
Code, which will enter into force in January 2017. more...
Guinea-Bissau accedes to multiple key IMO treaties
Guinea-Bissau has acceded to a number of important IMO treaties,
including the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS),
the key IMO treaty
governing the safety of shipping. Other instruments include the STCW
Convention, which establishes international standards for training,
certification and watchkeeping for seafarers, and the International Convention
on Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR).
H. E. Mr. Fidélis Forbs, Secretary of State, Ministry of Transport and
Telecommunications of Guinea-Bissau, met IMO Secretary-General at IMO
Headquarters, London (24 October) to deposit the instruments of accession. more...
IMO climate change moves on agenda
IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 70) is this week discussing proposals to adopt a mandatory regulation for ships to record and report their fuel consumption. The requirements for ships to record and report their fuel consumption were approved at the last session. Also on the agenda is a decision on the implementation date (2020 or 2025) for the global 0.50% m/m sulphur cap for fuel oil. With the Ballast Water Management Convention entering into force in September 2017, implementation of the treaty will be under consideration. The MEPC was opened by Secretary-General Kitack Lim and is being chaired by Arsenio Dominguez (Panama). Follow the conversation #MEPC70 @IMOHQ. more...
Supporting Myanmar’s search and rescue services
IMO is supporting Myanmar’s efforts to improve its national search and rescue (SAR) services with an IMO-led needs assessment mission (17-18 October). Experts are analysing the current structure of the country’s SAR organization as well as the available SAR facilities, and shore-based infrastructure of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS). more...
Towards a digital agenda for sustainable development
Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs) through information and communication technology (ICT) is on the agenda
at the United Nations’ ICT Network meeting in Geneva, Switzerland (17-18
October). The meeting is discussing progress on its Digital Agenda Action Plan,
designed to support UN programmes and the work being done towards the SDGs. Other
important issues, such as information security, are also being discussed. more...
Seafarer training gets a boost in Fiji
IMO has been continuing its work to support countries in implementing key international treaties, with a national training course for seafarer training instructors and examiners – held in Suva, Fiji (10-15 October). The event was attended by officials responsible for implementing the key international treaty concerning international standards for training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers (STCW Convention), to which Fiji is a Party.
This course was organized by IMO and the Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji and attended by 48 participants from the Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji, Fiji Maritime Academy and National Training and Productivity Centre and the Pacific Community (SPC). IMO was represented by Milhar Fuazudeen and a consultant.
IMO supports African maritime summit
IMO is
continuing its work to support sustainable maritime development in Africa by
participating in the opening of the African Union Extraordinary Summit on Maritime
Security and Safety and Development in Africa, held in Lomé, Togo (11-15
October). The Summit is addressing all aspects of maritime safety and security
governance and is expected to conclude with the adoption, by African Heads of
State and Government, of a Charter on Maritime Security and Safety and
Development in Africa. more...
Supporting SDG implementation
How IMO’s integrated technical cooperation programme can support the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals is one of the key items on the agenda of the Technical Co-operation Committee, which is meeting for its 66th session (10-12 October). IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim opened the 66th session, which is being chaired by Mr. Zulkurnain Ayub (Malaysia). (click for photos). more...
Togo ratifies high seas intervention treaty
Togo has become the 89th State to ratify IMO’s International
Convention
Relating to Intervention on the High Seas in Cases of Oil Pollution Casualties of
1969. The Convention affirms the right of a coastal State to take necessary
measures on the high seas to prevent, mitigate or eliminate danger to its
coastline or related interests from pollution by oil following a maritime
casualty. The States that have ratified the treaty now represent 75.08% of
world tonnage. more...