International Maritime Organization
Maintained by IMO
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Shipping is perhaps the most international of the world's industries, serving
more than 90 per cent of global trade by carrying huge quantities of cargo cost
effectively, cleanly and safely.
The ownership and management chain surrounding any ship can embrace many
countries and ships spend their economic life moving between different
jurisdictions, often far from the country of registry. There is, therefore, a
need for international standards to regulate shipping - which can be adopted
and accepted by all. The first maritime treaties date back to the 19th century,
while the Titanic disaster of 1912 spawned the first international safety of
life at sea - SOLAS - convention, still the most important treaty addressing
maritime safety.
The Convention establishing the International Maritime Organization (IMO) was
adopted in Geneva in 1948 and IMO first met in 1959. IMO's main task has been
to develop and maintain a comprehensive regulatory framework for shipping and
its remit today includes safety, environmental concerns, legal matters,
technical co-operation, maritime security and the efficiency of shipping.
A specialized agency of the United Nations with 168 Member States and three
Associate Members, IMO is based in the United Kingdom with around 300
international staff.
IMO's specialized committees and sub-committees are the focus for the technical
work to update existing legislation or develop and adopt new regulations, with
meetings attended by maritime experts from Member Governments, together with
those from interested intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.
The result is a comprehensive body of international conventions, supported by
hundreds of recommendations governing every facet of shipping. There are,
firstly, measures aimed at the prevention of accidents, including standards for
ship design, construction, equipment, operation and manning - key treaties
include SOLAS, the MARPOL convention for the prevention of pollution by ships
and the STCW convention on standards of training for seafarers.
Then there are measures which recognize that accidents do happen, including
rules concerning distress and safety communications, the International
Convention on Search and Rescue and the International Convention on Oil
Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation.
Thirdly, there are conventions which establish compensation and liability
regimes - including the International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil
Pollution Damage, the convention establishing the International Fund for
Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage and the Athens Convention covering
liability and compensation for passengers at sea.
Inspection and monitoring of compliance are the responsibility of member
States, but the adoption of a Voluntary IMO Member State Audit Scheme is
expected to play a key role in enhancing implementation of IMO standards.
IMO has an extensive technical co-operation programme, which identifies needs
among resource-shy Members and matches them to assistance, such as training.
IMO has founded three advanced level maritime educational institutes in Malmö,
Malta and Trieste.
Today, we live in a society which is supported by a global economy, which
simply could not function if it were not for shipping. IMO plays a key role in
ensuring that lives at sea are not put at risk and that the marine environment
is not polluted by shipping - as summed up in IMO's mission statement: Safe,
Secure and Efficient Shipping on Clean Oceans.
The purposes of the Organization, as summarized by Article 1(a) of the
Convention, are to provide machinery for co-operation among Governments in the
field of governmental regulation and practices relating to technical matters of
all kinds affecting shipping engaged in international trade; to encourage and
facilitate the general adoption of the highest practicable standards in matters
concerning maritime safety, efficiency of navigation and prevention and control
of marine pollution from ships. The Organization is also empowered to deal with
administrative and legal matters related to these purposes. The Organization is
composed of Member States and Associate Members. See More...
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UN’s role in world shipping over 60 years celebrated on World Maritime Day
by UN News Centre24 September 2008
In the 21st century where communications are instantaneous, 90 per cent of
world trade still reaches its destination via the commercial shipping industry,
which has been shaped over the last six decades by the practices and standards
set by the United Nations International Maritime Organization (IMO).
Read more at http://www.un.org/apps/n ... time&Cr1=.
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