Seafarer

  "Bloody Pirates.............." This was probably uttered many times by many ship owners, operators, ship captains, seafarers and insurers.. From January to June 2022, there were...

Currently sitting in the comfort of your home or office can you imagine a life without access to the internet or social connectivity, especially...

The COVID-19 pandemic affected many people worldwide, but it has been particularly severe for seafarers. As the number of variants increased and new infections...

Provide an enforceable global protocol for "green channel" travel for seafarers This is the call from Frank Coles who has started a petition to the...

Captain Sunil Kumar Nandeshwar and First Officer, Hitihanillage Subhoda Janendra Tilakaratna of the 203,000 DWT Capesize vessel Wakashio which hit a coral reef and...

This is the Annual Review of the shipping and freight industry in 2021 by Shipping and Freight Resource.. This is an in depth look into what transpired in our industry in 2021 in terms of the maritime and global trade, shipping and freight practices, Global Shipping Alliances, Carriers and their profits and mostly about the disruptions surrounding supply chain.. Welcome to The View from the Top..

The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), 104th session, 4-8 October 202, approved a draft IMO Assembly resolution consolidating issues related to crew change, access to medical care, ʺkey workerʺ designation and seafarers’ prioritization for COVID-19 vaccination, with a view to adoption at the 32nd session of the IMO Assembly (6-15 December 2021).

Seafarer voices were front and centre on IMO’s World Maritime Day, with an all-seafarer panel discussing a number of issues relating to this year’s theme of ‘Seafarers at the core of shipping’s future’. The event saw port captain Ayse Basak, ordinary seamen Yrhen Balins, and ship captains Marwa El Selehdar and Thomas Madsen share their views on topics that they see as important to the future of the industry and their careers.

On 30 September 2021, IMO and the global maritime community come together to celebrate the annual World Maritime Day, with a focus on this year’s theme: “Seafarers: At the core of shipping’s future”.

The 2021 theme was chosen as part of a year of action for seafarers, who play a vital role as key workers for global supply chains but are facing unprecedented hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim has welcomed the World Health Organization‘s decision to name seafarers as one of the groups of transportation workers that should be prioritised for COVID-19 vaccination in instances of limited supplies.

The Day of the Seafarer, held on 25 June every year, draws global attention to the contribution that seafarers make to world trade.

As the world slowly moves through the pandemic, it is more important than ever not only to acknowledge the efforts that seafarers have made to keeping the supply chain open despite extremely challenging conditions, but also to ensure that the future being built is one that is fair to them.

This is why IMO's 2021 Day of the Seafarer campaign has chosen the theme of "A Fair Future for Seafarers".

BIMCO has launched an initiative to raise awareness about the crucial role of shipping and its seafarers. Seafarers are keyworkers who make the world work and seafarers deserve our support. Help raise awareness outside the shipping industry by sharing these videos which reflect the struggle faced by seafarers on a daily basis.

New due diligence tool aims to help businesses uphold their responsibility to protect human rights at sea.

This is the message from the IMO who have issued a wide-ranging set of guidance to help enterprises using shipping services to protect the human rights of seafarers, as hundred of thousands are still stranded on ships due to COVID-19 imposed travel restrictions.

The Human Rights Due Diligence Tool is a joint initiative of the UN Global Compact (UNGC), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights), the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Seafarers are the backbone of the maritime sector. There are an estimated 1,647,500 seafarers serving on various ships globally. Off these, more than 770,000+ are officers and 870,000+ are ratings (non-officer rank). In terms of ratings, Philippines is the biggest supplier of ratings, followed by China, Indonesia, Russia and Ukraine whereas China is the biggest supplier of officers, followed by the Philippines, India, Indonesia and Russia. India as the 3rd largest supplier of seafarers in the rank of officers accounts for around 9.35% of the global seafarer population. This makes India a popular destination for crew signing on and off. While the 2nd wave of COVID-19 continues its onslaught on India in the recent weeks, seafarers who have recently visited India may find themselves in a bit of a pickle especially if their shipping route involves Singapore and they were planning to sign on to the ship at Singapore.

Crew change crisis is far from over and issues around vaccination need to be resolved. The crew change crisis caused by COVID-19 restrictions continues to...

The World Maritime Theme for 2021 is dedicated to seafarers, highlighting their central role in the future of shipping. "We all must do better to...

It is very disheartening to see that commercial and business travelers are allowed to travel all over the world using the same planes and airports, but seafarers are not allowed to do so.. That is pure discrimination and gross violation of human rights..!!

Spare a thought for these brave souls as they wait in anticipation just to get home after working non-stop for months, some even after their contracts have expired and without pay………….

Will declarations like the Neptune Declaration on Seafarer Wellbeing and Crew Change make a difference unless all Governments actually do what is humane and necessary..??

IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim has spoken out against “no crew change” clauses in charterparties, pointing out that such clauses exacerbate the dire situation of stranded seafarers and undermine the efforts undertaken to resolve the ongoing crew change crisis.

So-called “no crew change” clauses, which are demanded by certain charterers, state that no crew changes can occur whilst the charterer’s cargo is onboard – hence not allowing the ship to deviate to ports where crew changes could take place. 

UN Human Rights Day puts the global spotlight on the importance of human rights in the post-COVID recovery.

IMO is highlighting the plight of the hundreds of thousands of seafarers who are still stranded at sea and has issued a strong call for their fundamental rights to be respected.

It is estimated that 400,000 seafarers are currently stranded on ships beyond the end of their original contracts and unable to be repatriated, due to COVID-related travel restrictions.

The United Nations General Assembly has called on UN Member States to designate seafarers and other marine personnel as key workers and to implement relevant measures to allow stranded seafarers to be repatriated and others to join ships, and to ensure access to medical care.