Role and mandate of the International Maritime Organization

Role and mandate of the International Maritime Organization

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. Its role is to form laws and normative standards for the safety and security of international shipping. IMO also works to encourage cooperation in various areas like environmental protection and financing of shipping companies.

What is International Maritime Organization (IMO)?

International Maritime Organization (IMO) is an independent specialized agency of the United Nations that established in 17 March 1948 and is headquartered in London, England. It is responsible for formulating a regulatory framework for the shipping industry across the world.

Role of the International Maritime Organization:

Regulatory framework for the shipping industry: The IMO is responsible for developing an integrated, efficient, economical and safe international shipping system that ensures the security of shipping, the protection of the marine environment and the prevention of marine pollution from ships. It develops regulations and convenes conferences to reach agreement on standards and recommended practices designed to ensure the safety of life at sea, facilitate the prevention of maritime casualties and administer measures relating to maritime security.

Safety and security of international shipping: The International Maritime Organization sets minimum standards for the safety and security of international shipping and its crews, publishes guidelines and policies to promote high industry standards and to ensure that international maritime transport is environmentally sound. The IMO aims to reduce the incidence of maritime casualties with tools such as safety manuals, conventions, training courses and gap analyses to help governments make changes required to avoid such incidents.

Goal-Based New Ship Construction Standards: The International Maritime Organization sets the rules for international shipping. One of the objectives and responsibilities of the IMO, establishing standards for shipbuilding. The IMO defines a number of mandatory rules setting minimum required safety procedures for the design, construction, and operation of merchant ships.

Investigation of the Maritime Casualties and Incidents: One of the major responsibilities of IMO is to investigate the losses and incidents in the maritime industry. It ensures that the conduct of investigations, analysis and reporting of accidents is in accordance with the globally recognized best practices. Furthermore, it deals with the anomalies and irregularities as well. They examine and study marine statistics in order to eliminate any conflicting interests from the sources.

Creating a level playing-field: As a convention with quasi-autonomous powers, IMO has become the universally recognized authority on shipping regulations. IMO's goal is to create a level playing-field and prevent compromise on safety, security and environmental performance. It plays an important role in facilitating cooperation among governments on technical matters of all kinds affecting shipping engaged in international trade.

Marine pollution: Although IMO was not created specifically for the purpose of preventing marine pollution, as the demand for clean waters and ocean increased, it started to give much attention to the prevention of marine pollution and the measures to keep the oceans clean. It has been successful so far in reducing the pollution of oceans in more than one way.

Piracy and armed robbery against ships: The role of the IMO is to prevent and suppress piracy and armed robbery at sea; ensure the security of maritime navigation and communication; foster the development of safe, secure and efficient shipping; and ensure that measures taken in the field of shipping maintain international peace and stability.

Importance for Indian maritime interests:

Rule based trade: The Indian government hopes to establish a rule-based order for the shipping industry to establish an enabling environment for the economy to seamlessly integrate with global growth. Such a framework would ensure predictability, transparency and provide a level playing field to all stakeholders of this crucial maritime sector thereby optimizing India’s vast potential as a trade route for global commerce now and in the future.

Tackling Piracy: A prominent issue for India today is the continued piracy in the Malacca, Singapore straits, and the Indian Ocean. Attacks on merchant ships in these regions occur on a regular basis. The cost to trade as a result of West Africa piracy doesn’t include the major costs incurred by the shipping insurance industry. Safeguarding these is important for securing India’s interests.

Energy security: The passage of oil tankers through the Indian Ocean is a very important aspect of maritime trade. While it has never been easier to transport goods and services between nations, the safety of these shipments is something that has long concerned both shippers and governments. The Indian Ocean provides a vital access point for regional, and international trade, as highlighted in the image above. In order to make sure that coastal areas are protected from energy-related environmental threats, India has to work closely with the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

India’s shipping industry: Shipping is as important for India’s trade and commerce as it is for the rest of the world. The major commodity carried by Indian ships is crude oil with iron ore as another large item. India imports about 80% of its crude oil requirement from the Middle East via shipping. Indian mariners man a substantial part of the fleet.

Preventing conflicts: The International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) rules and policies have a significant impact on all the nations. While these policies are generally in favor of maritime interests, some of them also bring grief to certain maritime interests. The IMO’s demarcation of “High-Risk Areas” when piracy was at its peak has resulted in virtually the entire southwest coast of India being seen as piracy-infested. This has impacted India’s maritime interests.