International Maritime Organization
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The International Maritime Organization (IMO), formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO), was established in 1948 through the United Nations to coordinate international maritime safety and related practices. However the IMO did not enter into full force until 1958.
Headquartered in London, U.K., the IMO promotes cooperation among governments and the shipping industry to improve maritime safety and to prevent marine pollution. IMO is governed by an Assembly of members and is financially administered by a Council of members elected from the Assembly. The work of IMO is conducted through five committees and these are supported by technical sub-committees. Member organizations of the UN organizational family may observe the proceedings of the IMO. Observer status may be granted to qualified non-governmental organizations.
The IMO is supported by a permanent secretariat of employees who are representative of its members. The secrectariat is composed of a Secretary-General who is periodically elected by the Assembly, and various divisions including, inter alia, marine safety, environmental protection, and a conference section.
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[edit] History
The concept of IMO was born after the RMS Titanic disaster. By modern standards, the design of the Titanic made her appallingly vulnerable. Her "watertight" bulkheads, by design, did not extend all the way to the overhead because the engineers calculated that it was impossible for the ship to take on a trim or list sufficient for water to cascade over their tops if the bulkheads were of a certain height.
When Titanic struck the iceberg, these calculations were proven dismally incorrect. When people began abandoning ship, it became obvious that not nearly enough lifeboats were available. Many lives and much money were lost in this tragedy.
Up until that time, each nation had made its own rules about ship design, construction, and safety equipment. The Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO) was formed in response to the Titanic event, but was "put on the back burner" when World War I broke out. After the war ended, IMCO was revived and produced a group of regulations concerning shipbuilding and safety called "Safety Of Life At Sea"..." SOLAS". Through the years, SOLAS has been modified and upgraded to adapt to changes in technology and lessons learned.
IMCO eventually became IMO. IMO regularly enacts regulations (such as the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea) which are enforced by class societies and recognized organizations who survey ships regularly to ensure compliance with specific laws applicable to each individual ship. Port State Control authority was enacted, allowing such agencies as the US and British coast guards to inspect foreign flag ships calling at ports of the many port states. Memoranda of Understanding (protocols)were signed by some countries unifying Port State Control procedures among the signators.
Of course, the numbers will never be known, but IMO has protected countless lives, saved enormous amounts of money, and prevented numerous environmental disasters over the years.
[edit] Legal instruments
IMO is the source of approximately 60 legal instruments that guide the regulatory development of its member states to improve safety at sea, facilitate trade among seafaring states and protect the maritime environment. The most well known being the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS).
[edit] Current issues
Recent initiatives at the IMO have included amendments to the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS), which upgraded fire protection standards on passenger ships, the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) which establishes basic requirements on training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers and to the Convention on the Prevention of Maritime Pollution (MARPOL 73/78), which required double hulls on all tankers. All these initiatives were instigated by representatives of the United States before the IMO.
Prior to 11 September 2001, IMO had begun work on the International Ship and Port Security Code, which was designed to provide guidance for shipowners and port facilities in establishing strict security procedures to prevent weapons of mass destruction and other contraband from being transported by ship. The events of 9/11 created greater urgency to this effort and, in December 2002, new amendments to the 1974 SOLAS Convention were enacted. These amendments gave rise to the International Ship and Port Security Code, which went into effect on 1 July 2004.
The ISPS Code required most ships and port facilities engaged in international trade to establish and maintain strict security procedures as specified in ship and port specific Ship Security Plans and Port Facility Security Plans. The concept of the Code is to provide layered and redundant defenses against smuggling, terrorism, piracy, stowaways, etc.
The IMO is also responsible for publishing the International Code of Signals for use between merchant and naval vessels.
[edit] Secretary-General
The current Secretary-General is Mr. Efthimios E. Mitropoulos. He was elected for a four-year term on 18 June 2003.
[edit] See also
- Supply Chain Security
- IMDG code for the carriage of dangerous goods (DG) at sea
