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By Stephen Ubanna
Today, Wednesday, September 28, 2022 2022, all roads, lead to Eko Hotel and Towers, Lagos, the nation’s Commercial nerve centre as Nigeria, join other nations to celebrate the world maritime Day. Kitack Lim, Secretary General, International Maritime Organisation, IMO, had said that the 2022, World Maritime Day celebration is ‘’in line with the IMO, Campaigns, for sustainable development’’. The theme for the 2022, celebration, according to Lim, is ’’New technologies for Greener shipping’’. He had said that the theme for the 2022 celebration, ‘’reflects the need to support a green transition of the world maritime sector’’.
In his in his message to the member nations of the UN, maritime agency, he was emphatic that the theme for the 2022 world Maritime Day, ‘’New technologies for greener shipping will provide an opportunity to all maritime nations ‘’to promote inclusive innovation, research and development and technology Cooperation and to showcase solutions for decarbonisation and more environmentally friendly shipping as well as on climate action’’,
Lim noted that these ambitions ’’will benefit every maritime nation, stating that no country will be left behind’’. He had said that the theme for this year’s World Maritime Day, is not only a theme but ‘’it marks a pathway to implement the United Nations, UN, 2030, agenda for sustainable development’’, which was said to have set out 17 development goals or SDGs, particular, SDG13 on climate action, SDG 14 on sustainable use of the oceans, seas and marine resources and SDG nine on industry, innovation and infrastructure.
He averred that ‘’ it is all about partnership and inclusive technological solutions, reflecting SDG, 17, which highlights the importance of partnerships and implementation to achieve all the goals’’. Lim, the IMO , Secretary General, had said that that the ‘’New technologies for greener shipping which is the theme for the 2022, World Maritime Day, would up a larger conversation about shipping’s direction and how technologies can be harnessed for a more sustainable future. An elated Lim disclosed that ‘’it would also provide an incentive to further examine how digitization an automation can support shipping’’.
He may have gladdened the heart maritime Administrators, the world-over, when he said that ‘’throughout the remaining months of this year, IMO, will highlight green-shipping solutions across the industry and provide platform for sharing information and best practices’’. This is in addition to fostering a dialogue on innovation and technology needs for greener shipping, sharing knowledge at the global level.
This may have informed why he had said that IMO, will continue to provide updates and initiatives being trailed and piloted by the Organisation established Maritime Technology Cooperation Centres, MTCCs and the Green Voyage 2050, decarbonisation project while further initiative t and the Blue Solutions project.Another global project, which he had said will showcase solutions for biofuling management to protect biodiversity and reduce emissions while further initiative will tackle marine plastic litter.
Recall that at the 2021, Greener shipping summit that was said to have been organised by Newsfront/Naftiliaki under the auspices of Greece ‘s powerful technical body, MARTECMA, the Summit was said to have presented and discussed developments at the IMO regarding NOX, CO2 and PM emissions.
The summit was said to have also looked further down the road to decarbonisation, speed limits of vessels, emission caps, and emission trading systems, alternative fuels and methods of propulsion. Among the environmental regulations that were said to have been discussed at the Greece summit include zero emissions agenda, Commercial measures for emissions reduction through ETS and Levy on fuel emissions as well as the impact of the environmental regulations in ship financing and the Commercial operation.
The far reaching decisions taken in the 2021, greener shipping summit in Greece may have informed why IMO officials have attached much importance to the theme: New Technologies for greener shipping in the 2022, World Maritime Day Celebration.
As part of the events planned for this 2022, World Maritime Day celebration, Lim led agency had said that a virtual IMO-UNEP, Forum, would also hold at the Headquarter in London, United Kingdom. The global platform, he had said ‘’is aimed at championing innovation to accelerate the transition of the maritime sector towards zero-and-low emission in future.
Muazu Jaji Sambo, the minister of Transportation, had told those cares to listen in the nation’s maritime sector, that ‘’Nigeria would not be left behind in the global move towards greener shipping , while also reflecting on the need for industry stakeholders to begin exploring ways to transition into a greener and more sustainable future’’.
Barshir Jamoh, Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, on his part , noted that the theme for this year’s world maritime day celebration is in line with the agency’s mission of achieving cleaner oceans in developing shipping in Nigeria’’.
He revealed that NIMASA, under his close watch is ‘’already working in line with the call by the IMO Secretary General for developing countries to adopt green technology’’. According to him, ‘’Nigeria represented by the agency, is an active member state of the IMO, is involved in the processes of creating new international agreements and protocols to address environmental issues such as marine pollution, oil spils and emissions from the nation’s shipping industry’’.
