Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure in the UAE recently launched the ‘Supporting our Blue Army’ initiative in an effort to protect seafarers’ rights and welfare.
As informed, the initiative protects seafarers’ rights with ship owners and operating companies, as well as helps seafarers overcome the challenges they face as a result of the pandemic and travel restrictions.
Namely, ‘Supporting our Blue Army’ initiative is a comprehensive framework for the Ministry’s achievements that implement the ‘Enhancing Wellbeing’ criterion in the UAE Government Excellence System.
The Ministry has dedicated initiatives to care for and support seafarers. This will have a global impact in the countries with trade links that depend on the shipping industry and its unknown soldiers of seafarers.
Commenting on this initiative, H.E Eng. Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure in the UAE, said: “When talking about the maritime transport sector, the UAE is a unique model. It ranks the 9th best global maritime hub and has some of the largest and most developed ports in the region in terms of infrastructure and digital systems. The UAE is a logistics hub linking global shipping lines and has the major share of the ships that call on the region’s ports, with more than 21,000 ships every year. Over 20,000 local and international maritime companies operate in the UAE with over 17 million containers handled in the UAE ports annually. These operations add significant economic returns to the national economy. All these achievements cannot be made without the dedication of thousands of seafarers who arrive to the UAE’s waters on board ships from across the world.”
What is more, the initiative includes several achievements made by the Ministry in terms of protecting and supporting seafarers. The most prominent of these achievements is contributing to issuing the Cabinet’s resolution regarding marine wrecks and violating ships; announcing the regulations that guarantee the protection of seafarers’ rights; and signing an agreement with the International Transport Workers’ Federation to enhance cooperation in supporting seafarers.
These efforts are in parallel with providing material and moral support to seafarers in the UAE; providing them with free treatment and COVID-19 vaccines, the UAE’s initiative to allow crew replacement, in which the UAE has achieved a global precedence, alleviating the suffering of seafarers. More than 214,000 seafarers confined to their ships, were assisted in the replacement process and went back to their home countries.
We are confident that this initiative will have a global impact as thousands of seafarers who come to the UAE will benefit from it. The UAE will be the international benchmark for ensuring the welfare of seafarers and their rights. Ships that violate the rights of seafarers will not be able to enter the UAE waters, and therefore will not be part of the regional trade centre and the global supply chain and logistics services.
…Sheikh Nasser Majid Al-Qasimi, Assistant Undersecretary for the Infrastructure and Transport Sector at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, said.
