Global COVID-19 Summit

Global COVID-19 Summit speech by Kitack Lim, Secretary-General, International Maritime Organization (IMO)

 International Shipping has kept more than 80 per cent of world trade moving without disruption during the Covid pandemic.

Yet this has come at extreme cost to seafarers who are still striving to leave and join ships, to access urgent medical care, and to get vaccinated.

The International Maritime Organization, the International Labour Organization, the shipping industry and labour unions have collaborated extremely well to disseminate protocols to ensure safe crew changes, access to medical care, and vaccination for seafarers

Nonetheless the challenges persist.

We need more governments to designate seafarers and marine personnel as key workers to be granted access to special travel arrangements and to vaccination regardless of nationality.

We share the call to vaccinate the world, to save lives now and to build back better.

 The International Maritime Organization will continue to work with UN Agencies and the maritime community to support vaccination for all, while working towards a sustainable global shipping.