Tag: seafarer safety

Following the kidnap of 20 crewmembers from MV Duke off the coast of Benin, ISWAN and ICMA (the International Christian Maritime Association) partner to express their concerns about the wellbeing and safety of seafarers who sail the "notorious and dangerous waters of the Gulf of Guinea".

During the first SAFETY4SEA Forum in Manila, Gavin Lim, Regional Development Manager for Asia, Sailors’ Society talked about wellness at sea training and surveys, highlighting that companies should adopt new ways to engage in promoting on board health and well-being, since the current definition of wellness looks at the human being’s holistic nature.

During the first SAFETY4SEA Forum in Manila, Leo M. Bolivar, Country Manager, International Registries (Far East) Limited, which provides administrative and technical support to the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) Registry, noted that global demand for competent seafarers has been constantly growing over the years with shortage expected to peak in the next five years. He then described how the RMI Registry together with other industry stakeholders is proactively developing future seafarers through its work at the IMO, as well as human resources programs on education, training, and experience to produce quality crew for safer ships.

During the last SAFETY4SEA Singapore Forum, Captain Hari Subramaniam, Regional Head – Business Relations of The Shipowners’ Club, shared his thoughts on seafarers’ fatigue

Capt. Yiannis Kapageridis, QA Superintendent, addresses the challenge of engaging and re-engaging seafarers. Namely, engagement can keep a seafarer motivated on the task in hand while also taking good care of themselves as well as those around them and performing their responsibilities efficiently.

During the first SAFETY4SEA Forum in Manila, Capt. Albert E. Bartilad, Vice President and COO of Manila Shipmanagement & Manning, Inc. and Vice President and CTO of the Manship Maritime Training Center, Inc. shed light on a relatively modern concept: safer, smarter seafaring through soft skills training. Capt. Bartilad believes that competence, while necessary, does not always guarantee performance. Accidents, he stresses, will always happen, and he advocates the development of resilient crew who can perform in difficult situations as the key to preventing greater loss.

U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, the Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, released the results of the investigation they conducted concerning how the USCG handled bullying incidents and allegations over harassment. Thus, they provide seven recommendations, as the investigation revealed that there is still room for improvement.

On Friday, December 6, the Director of the Merchant Navy Training Board (MNTB), Kathryn Neilson, addressed the seventy Vships cadets and staff during their conference; highlighting the vitally important work implemented by the MNTB right now. 

Given that December 10 is the Human Rights Day, it is important to remember that in 1948 the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Right, what believed to be an accomplishment those times, proclaiming equality for all regardless color, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. 

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has updated its Code of safe working practices for merchant seafarers (COSWP) 2019, which was firstly published on 4 September 2015. The Code of Safe Working Practices (COSWP) Code details the regulatory framework for health and safety on board, safety management and statutory duties underlying the advice in the Code and the areas that should be covered when introducing a recruit to the safety procedures on board.