IMLI Graduation 2023

IMLI Graduation 2023 

Friday, 30 June 2023 

Graduation address - Mr. Kitack Lim, IMO Secretary-General and Chairman, IMLI Governing Board

 

President, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

Dear Graduands, 

It is my great pleasure to return once again to Malta and address your graduation ceremony at this prestigious Institute which is very close to my heart. 

I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to all who are here today for joining us on this very special occasion to celebrate the success of IMLI's 34th generation of future maritime leaders. 

I am always heartened to see the graduands standing proud as they receive their degrees and bid their farewells to IMLI. 

So, as I look at all of you graduating in this year's class, I cannot help but share your excitement and pride in what you have accomplished. 

You faced challenges, yet you persevered and achieved your goals. As Walter Elliot said, "Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other." 

You all ran many of those races and with the help and support of all those who make IMLI a centre of excellence in international maritime law, leaned forward and crossed the finish line.

 

Ladies and gentlemen, 

We have come together today to celebrate the success of all 53 of you maritime professionals who will apply your newly acquired skills to develop national legislative frameworks. 

I am particularly pleased to congratulate the graduands from Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries whose presence today bears testament to IMLI's uniqueness in providing quality training to all. 

I salute the female graduates who through their participation in the IMLI programmes bring to reality the visionary policy adopted by IMLI to reserve 50 per cent of the places for deserving women candidates. 

It is a fact that many of the Institute's female alumnae are highly regarded in the maritime world and occupy important international or national positions including at IMO.

 

Dear guests, 

Allow me to also extend my gratitude to IMLI's founding fathers and all those who were involved in making the establishment of the Institute a reality. 

Just as the international community needed then a centre of education on maritime legal matters and adequate implementation of international maritime instruments, we continue to need IMLI today and shall do so in the future. 

As the Institute enters, in October 2023, the 35th year of service to the rule of international maritime law, I wish greater success for the next 35 years. 

With this, I would like to express my deepest thanks and appreciation to Professor Attard who has been at IMLI's heart since the beginning. Starting as a special advisor to the founding Director and serving as an active teacher, he was appointed Director of the Institute in 1992, starting three decades of dedicated service. 

His long stint at IMLI's helm has been instrumental in turning IMLI into the world-wide known centre of academic excellence that it is today. 

Under his tenure, IMLI through its education, training and research agenda has greatly contributed to the advancement of capacity building around the world, with an outstanding impact on the maritime world and on IMO's work. 

I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to all organizations and institutions that provide assistance to the Institute to achieve its global mission. In particular, I must thank the Nippon Foundation which provides invaluable fellowship support to the Institute. 

I would also like to extend my sincere gratitude to the Government of Malta which has hosted IMLI since its inception and supported it throughout its existence. I am confident that this support will continue in the future. 

I wish also to take a moment to specifically thank Professor Norman Martinez whose passionate work will steer IMLI to a new era of positive changes. He and his academic and administrative staff have already turned challenges into opportunities and will lead IMLI to greater heights.

 

Dear Graduands,

Allow me to reflect on the opportunities and responsibilities that lie ahead of you.

I am convinced that you and every previous graduate of this fine Institute represent hope for our maritime community and our planet.  

You, the Class of 2023, have been empowered, through knowledge and skills, to contribute effectively to the realization of IMO's goals for a better world. 

You have had the privilege of being trained at IMLI – a centre of excellence for training specialists in international maritime law and for disseminating knowledge and expertise in the field. 

It is and will remain the cornerstone of the Organization's Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme. 

So, use the knowledge you have received to kindle a fire inside you to serve the international maritime community in general and your countries, in particular. 

As you turn a new page in the book of your professional achievements, think back to your first day of studies at IMLI, when you pledged to serve the rule of international maritime law.

IMLI's policy to serve IMO Member States should now be your own guiding principle in your future professional lives. You are now part of the wider IMO family and will be always recognized as holders of a degree from an Institute whose contribution to IMO's capacity-building is undisputed.

 

Dear Graduands, 

While you have been studying here, you have learned together and lived together. So, you are gathered here not only as graduands, but also as friends, confidantes, and colleagues, with experiences both shared and personal. Keep hold of those ties that bind you. 

With your graduation today, I welcome you to the formidable network of the IMLI Alumni.

I hope you will use your informal networks to support each other personally and professionally in the years to come. 

My wish for you is to continue flying high the IMLI flag and that you advance further the goals of sound ocean governance, protection of the marine environment, safe and secure seas, and decent working conditions for our seafarers. 

I will finish by congratulating you all on your graduation and wishing you all the very best for the future.

Thank you.