{"id":258616,"date":"2024-03-06T11:56:22","date_gmt":"2024-03-06T10:56:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unric.org\/en\/?p=258616"},"modified":"2024-03-07T13:56:15","modified_gmt":"2024-03-07T12:56:15","slug":"red-sea-crisis-underlines-role-of-un-shipping-agency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unric.org\/en\/red-sea-crisis-underlines-role-of-un-shipping-agency\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Sea crisis underlines role of UN shipping agency"},"content":{"rendered":"

The new Head of the International Maritime Organization<\/a> (IMO), Mr. Arsenio Dominguez, had been at the helm of the UN shipping agency for just three days when in January 2024 he briefed the UN Security Council on the crisis in the Red Sea. Houthi-led attacks on international shipping off the coast of Yemen have disrupted global trade since November 2023.<\/p>\n

International shipping is the backbone of the global economy, transporting more than 80% of global trade<\/a>, and IMO, headquartered in London, is responsible for regulating the industry. After a series of global crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the Red Sea attacks, the vital role played by maritime trade – and therefore IMO – has been plunged into the spotlight.<\/p>\n

Disruption in the Red Sea<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\"Secretary-General
Mr. Arsenio Dominguez has been Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization since January 2024 \u00a9 International Maritime Organization<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Houthi rebels in Yemen began attacking ships in the Red Sea in November 2023.<\/p>\n

Mr. Dominguez says his first reaction was one of \u201cconcern\u201d and condemns the attacks in an interview with UNRIC, \u201cin particular the negative effect that it has on seafarers who are innocent victims, and the negative effect it also has on the freedom of navigation in global trade.\u201d He says that attacks on international shipping cannot be justified and is calling for the immediate release of the Galaxy Leader and its crew, after the ship and its 25 seafarers were seized last November.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy third call is for the de-escalation of the situation and to continue to maintain the negotiations utilising of course first the United Nations, the UN Security Council, and the role of IMO in supporting shipping.\u201d<\/p>\n

In January 2024, the Security Council adopted a resolution<\/a> demanding that the Houthis immediately cease all attacks on merchant and commercial vessels. IMO has been in continuous conversation with relevant stakeholders and all IMO Member States to provide support to the countries around the Red Sea.<\/p>\n

A vital link through the Suez Canal<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\"Ships
The Suez Canal enables a more direct route for shipping between Europe and Asia \u00a9 Canva<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea, the Suez Canal enables a more direct route for shipping between Europe and Asia, compared to going around the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa. Goods including natural gas, oil, cars, raw materials and many manufactured products and industry components have been transported through the canal.<\/p>\n

Given the risk of attack in the Red Sea, many ships are now avoiding the vital waterway, and the volume of trade through the Suez Canal has fallen by 42%, estimates<\/a> the UN trade and development body, UNCTAD.<\/p>\n

Ships are instead opting for an extended route around the southernmost tip of Africa, which takes on average ten days more and drives up costs, not to mention impacts efforts to decarbonise the shipping industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cShips have now been forced to increase their emissions by travelling on a longer route,\u201d says Mr. Dominguez.<\/p>\n

Consumers will face increased prices, due to rising freight insurance and the operational costs of the ships.<\/p>\n

\u201cEconomies are still rebuilding from [the COVID-19 pandemic]. This is an unwanted situation because it will have an impact and the longer it continues, the more the impact will be felt,\u201d Mr. Dominguez adds.<\/p>\n

Spotlight on shipping in times of crisis<\/strong><\/h4>\n

The Red Sea disruption comes on top<\/a> of reduced vessel crossings in the Panama Canal due to abnormally low water levels linked to climate change impacts. The war in Ukraine is still affecting shipping.<\/p>\n

Such crises increase the attention on maritime transport\u2019s role in serving the global economy. In March 2021, for example, the grounding of the vast Ever Given container ship<\/a>, which blocked the Suez Canal for days, wreaked havoc with global supply chains and disrupted global trade flow.<\/p>\n

\u201cShipping is more than just when we have an accident,\u201d Mr. Dominguez underlines. He believes the maritime industry is \u201cunderestimated\u201d and that his new role as Secretary-General is to enhance its visibility and importance. \u201cWe have to be more outspoken.\u201d<\/p>\n

He has set out four strategic priorities<\/a>: IMO\u2019s work to regulate international shipping; its support to Member States \u2013 particularly Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs); enhancing public awareness and image; and relations with people and stakeholders.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe vision is for a more forward-looking organisation that is more transparent; more diverse in all its sense.\u201d<\/p>\n

A broad environmental agenda<\/strong><\/h4>\n

One of the key areas IMO will work on is making the shipping industry more sustainable. The sector operates an ageing fleet, with over half the world\u2019s ships now exceeding 15 years of age and running \u00a0almost exclusively on fossil fuels<\/a> – accounting for 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n

In July 2023, IMO Member States adopted a strategy<\/a> to tackle harmful emissions, including an ambition to decarbonise the shipping industry by around 2050. The work to achieve the transition is immense.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to rely as well on other the sectors to support our transition, such as the energy sector, as we will be needing new alternative fuels – low carbon and zero carbon fuels – that will allow us to decarbonise accordingly,\u201d says Mr. Dominguez, who in his previous role was Director of IMO’s Marine Environment Division.<\/p>\n

One of the targets established is for an uptake within the global fleet of at least 5% of alternative fuels by 2030.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sounds like a small number, but take into account that right now we are less than 0.5% of the uptake because the fuels are not available at the expected amounts. We still have a challenge.\u201d The alternative fuels must be tested for safety, and regulation must be put in place to guarantee security. Workforces need to be trained to handle the new fuels.<\/p>\n

In other work, IMO has adopted a strategy to address marine plastic litter<\/a> from ships; and has introduced protected areas<\/a> at sea which are vulnerable to damage by international maritime activities; as well as traffic monitoring systems to avoid collisions with mammals in the oceans.<\/p>\n

A focus on safety<\/strong><\/h4>\n

In office since 1 January 2024 for an initial four-year term, Mr. Dominguez hails from Panama, \u201ca shipping nation by nature\u201d, and which sparked his passion for the sector.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up seeing these incredible, majestic, huge ships on the bay in Panama. And of course, the linkages with the Panama Canal. It was one of the reasons why shipping was always attractive for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The IMO Head studied<\/a> naval architecture, and began his maritime career as a port engineer in Panama. He moved to London to join the Panama Maritime Authority, before going on to represent Panama at the IMO.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rest is history. I fell in love with everything. I respected and wanted to be part of all the good work that this organisation does for shipping and what shipping does for the world,\u201d Mr. Dominguez recounts.<\/p>\n

He highlights in particular the work IMO has done for the industry on safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cSafety is the area that IMO is born from,\u201d he says, citing how the agency has decreased shipping losses by 65% in over the past decade, and oil spills by more than 90% compared to numbers in the 70s.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a global industry [and] we need global regulations. That is what we are here for, and what we have been doing for just over 75 years now.\u201d<\/p>\n

See also:<\/strong><\/h4>\n