Posted: March 25th, 2024

An Analysis of the Roles of the International Maritime Organisation towards Maintaining Safety of Life at Sea (Maritime Safety)

An Analysis of the Roles of the International Maritime Organisation towards Maintaining Safety of Life at Sea (Maritime Safety)
1. Introduction
Maritime safety is one of the most important elements of shipping operations. It is an inherent expectation that ship owners and operators must manage and control all identified risks in order to prevent injury or loss of life to their personnel, and other persons on board or at sea. This entails ensuring that all those who may be affected by their activities have a right to expect that a commitment has been made to safety, and that this commitment is supported by proper safety management and a preparedness to make continuous safety improvements. In acknowledging this expectation, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has established a comprehensive framework of global and uniform rules designed to remove the many conflicting demands and requirements previously imposed by individual nations. In doing so, it has embedded safety as a fundamental principle in all technical cooperation, and continues to make a significant contribution to safer shipping and cleaner oceans and thus to the well-being of seafarers and the protection of the marine environment.
This thesis aims to provide an analysis of the roles of the IMO towards maintaining safety of life at sea, which is defined as a safety culture that is an essential part of day-to-day activities in the shipping industry. The thesis will be delimited to a study of IMO’s activities, in the aftermath of the continuous increase of major maritime accidents during the 1970s, which led to a growing concern for the safety of life at sea. Safety of life at sea is present in the preamble of the first IMO convention, the IMO has interpreted this as its obligation towards prevention of maritime casualties resulting in loss of life or injuries. In doing so, it has established many conventions and pursued efforts through its organs to ensure effective implementation and enforcement of those conventions.
The main purpose of this thesis is to examine the effect of the many measures taken by the IMO, both short and long term, towards its goal of prevention of maritime casualties and the effect of the conventions established as a result of those measures. Efforts and measures taken by the IMO have culminated in a vast and complex body of rules affecting all areas of the shipping industry and this work will be limited to an examination of the most significant measures and how effective they have been. This will be done by reference to a number of case studies of maritime accidents used as illustrative examples.
1.1 Importance of Maritime Safety
The seas and oceans are amongst the most important lifelines and conduits for trade and other forms of interaction between peoples and nations that the world possesses. They are criss-crossed by all manner of ships, from small fishing boats to huge passenger liners and cargo carrying vessels, and it is hard to overstate their importance. While aircraft carry a certain amount of high priority, lightweight, and perishable goods, the great mass of international trade in goods in bulk is carried via ships contracted for this purpose and only this purpose. An interruption to shipping due to loss of ships and crews would have a serious effect on world trade. It is very likely that the building and maintenance of the various forms of transport would be uneconomic if the risks were great. The result might well be to force the production of all the goods in the countries of the world to serve more local needs, a situation that would be detrimental to economic development in those countries and even more detrimental to the wellbeing of others. In any case, trade by sea can be considered to be an essential supplementary condition for economic development, which still remains an important factor in many efforts to raise standards of living in the world. It is events such as the stranding and loss of the Torrey Canyon, an oil tanker carrying crude oil from Kuwait to be refined in Britain, when it ran aground between the Scilly Islands and the coast of Cornwall in 1967, or the pollution of Communaute, a fully laden iron ore carrier that struck an uncharted rock off the coast of Mauritius in 1980 by running aground, that the fishing vessel was not insured and the cost of raising the wreck sank the at an international conference to inter-governmental of Ministers deal with measures to prevent pollution of the sea by ships in London made an extraordinary complaint to the Secretary General concerning this of are not only economically and financially unsound acts, but also spiritually and politically shortsighted. Yet it is perhaps in the industry of carrying passengers by sea that the recollection of noble traditions is most poignant. Many of the nations now no longer possess the great ocean liners that once UK and other European countries had personnel in demand this industry by those from left school at minimum age wanted to see world were able take passage who were to others made their colonials grand parents proud sending to universities. There would be from all forms of the most extravagant forms of taking holidays in foreign lands to the cases of various government-sponsored immigrant schemes. Passenger ships manned by professional seamen from crew masters, engineers, and ratings stewards were in many cases a special community on which their ties links with other races were no longer people behind work but were at present returning as desired the given up chance to by. All this is now largely overshadowed by the ease and lower cost of air travel. This is not to say that there have been some forms of quasi sea travel that have been little more than stowage in which it would be more humane and far safer to use an inflatable craft on the pond in one local park, but there is still a great benefit in sea travel provided that it is safe and reliable. Safety being a matter of grave concern in some areas of the world. It is the final aim of the study to determine what measures the or other industry at any cost on its own. This is a general moral duty, but in respect of the percentage of passage money spent on would speaking the safety of poor nations and their people. In carrying out this study, it will be well to remember the importance of the consideration an international problem and the traditions of other studies in its own field of great value these efforts must not go to waste.
1.2 Purpose of the Study
This study is important as the safety of life at sea is very important for seafarers, passengers, and the natural environment. Safety of life at sea is crucial for seafarers since they will be stuck at sea for a couple of months, and any uncertainty of returning home will affect them psychologically and physically. With passengers, the good reputation of safety by a certain sea transportation company is very important to ensure more customers in using their services. Any accidents involving passenger ships, especially with casualties, will affect the image of the company and will decline the number of their customers. As for the marine environment, if there are any casualties that damage the environment, the cost for cleaning up and ensuring no long-term effects will be quite high. This is because the marine environment is a very sensitive area and the effects of damage can be long-term. Thus, this study will help to ensure the safety of life at sea will be upheld and any measures taken will be more effective.
To give suggestions for the improvement of the IMO’s role in ensuring the safety of life at sea.
To recognize the shortcomings in the role of the IMO in ensuring the safety of life at sea.
To identify and analyze the measures of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) towards the safety of life at sea, which helps in preventing maritime casualties and protecting the marine environment.
1.3 Research Questions
The essay holds the objective of addressing the roles of the International Maritime Organization in maintaining safety of life at sea. In achieving the objective, the essay is driven by following questions:
How significant is the contribution made by IMO in maintaining safety of life at sea?
What are the significant safety measures accorded by the organizations and how it affects the shipping industry?
What are the constraints and the future prospects to achieve the objectives?
Is the ratification of international instruments more effective than that of enforcing a new convention applicable to member states?
These questions are constructed with the aim of critically evaluating the IMO and at the same time the shipping industry and its future in relevance to the safety of life at sea.
A- SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of this study is an Analysis of the Roles of the International Maritime Organization towards Maintaining Safety of Life at Sea. This also includes the evaluation of the safety measures and how it affects the shipping industry. The instruments of IMO are some of the most important factors in promoting safer procedures in the shipping industry. These conventions and codes adopted by the maritime nations are the means by which the IMO requirements are effectively complied with. Therefore, these instruments form the backbone in which the safety of life at sea convention is supported. The study also researches on the most effective method that can enhance safety at sea measures and its effectiveness towards the seafarer.
2. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO)
The International Maritime Organization or IMO came into existence in 1958 and it forms the basis for standards, regulations, and recommendations for the international shipping industry. It currently has a total of 167 member states, including coastal states and those whose economy is based significantly on shipping. The IMO is actually a branch of the United Nations, which is similar to the International Labor Organization. Previously, attempts had been made to solidify maritime safety standards, such as in the International Conference on Safety of Life at Sea in 1914 following the sinking of the Titanic, but these attempts were foiled due to the outbreak of World War One and there was no international body to coordinate efforts concerning the shipping industry. Despite the forming of the IMO after several further shipping disasters, its responsibility in coordinating maritime safety has primarily been conducted through the various conventions and treaties developed by the IMO, regarding the promotion of maritime safety in conjunction with preserving the marine environment and preventing marine pollution.
The objectives and functions of the IMO are fundamentally based upon its role in maintaining the safety of life at sea in the context of its historical foundation from past maritime disasters. It was in direct response to a series of shipping losses involving casualties after World War Two that the United Nations founded a conference on the establishment of an international body to promote maritime safety. This ultimately led to the forming of the IMO. An analysis of the IMO’s suggested goals is covered in the work by CC Gourtay wherein the IMO is supported in its efforts to potentially reduce various accident factors.
2.1 Historical Background
The history of the International Maritime Organization dates back to 1958, just after the Second World War, when there was a period of increasing prosperity through the shipping industry. World trade had grown and had become vital to the world’s economy. Increasing public pressure was placed on the industry as a result of a number of high-profile shipping disasters, one of which was the sinking of the liner Titanic in 1912, with a loss of 1503 lives. This and other incidents resulted in the first international Safety of Life at Sea conference in 1914, with the final act being signed in 1919, but it did not come into force. A treaty was subsequently put together in 1929, which also did not come into force, due to the economic depression and the political division that eventually led to World War Two. The necessity to rebuild after the war and the devastation caused by it led to the final SLA treaty coming into force in 1948, although it was felt to be totally inadequate.
It was against this historical background that more and more nations participants and consultative members of the United Nations felt the need to establish an international body to create regulation where it is felt necessary to avoid the inadequate repeating itself. This resulted in a United Nations conference on maritime safety held in 1948, which adopted resolutions setting up a maritime safety committee and the necessary inter-governmental machinery to establish a new higher-level body to create international standards and regulations for shipping, eventually leading to the forming of the IMO.
2.2 Objectives and Functions
The IMO’s main objective is to develop and maintain a comprehensive regulatory framework for shipping and its objectives include the facilitation of international maritime transport, and the prevention of marine pollution. It has also been involved in various conventions and treaties mostly related to international shipping, one of the most important one being the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) convention. This treaty was first developed after the sinking of the Titanic in 1914 and has since been updated numerous times. It now governs all aspects of ship safety including construction, fire protection, safety equipment, and various other safety measures.
Another important treaty developed by the IMO is the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships which has been updated in 1973, 1978, and 1997. This treaty aims to prevent and eliminate pollution from ships whether it be accidental or operational and currently includes six specific annexes relating to various forms of marine pollution. These two treaties have been important steps towards the IMO’s objectives and their intentions are to ensure shipping is safe, secure, efficient, and environmentally friendly.
2.3 Structure and Decision-Making Process
The IMO is an organ of the United Nations and as such includes most UN members. At the apex of the structure is the Assembly composed of all members and holding biennial meetings. The Assembly decides the work program, budget, and determines the overall strategy of the organization. Much of the implementation of the Assembly’s strategy is directed through the Council that is elected by the Assembly. The Council is composed of three categories of states determined by those who are the largest contributors to the budget and those who have special interests in sea transport (i.e. those states with the most tonnage registered) with as many places left over for states with the largest interest in maritime transport. The categorization has been the subject of some criticism by some who believe it creates an unhealthy bias towards states and organizations that have commercial interests in sea transport. The criticism appears to be unfounded as one of the major decisions of the IMO in this decade was to phase out rededicated meetings of certain member states and move to single generic meetings. The IMO maintains a secretariat based in London which consists of the Secretary General and other staff deemed necessary by the Assembly. The Secretary General is elected by the Assembly for a period of four years and is eligible for re-election. This term of office is renewable and the Secretary General is eligible to continue in a caretaker role until the appointment of a successor. This structure indicates a separation of powers with the Secretary General enabling the Secretary General and the Assembly acting as a form of executive.
2.4 Role in Developing International Regulations
In the years to follow, IMO has developed and adopted more than 60 international instruments which guide the regulatory development of the subject matter. It has addressed various recommendations or amendments to conventions through resolutions to provide the necessary machinery to implement and give effect to its rules. This process often involves detailed consideration in a Committee setting, e.g. the recommendations to amend a convention might be debated by the Maritime Safety Committee and if accepted, sent to the relevant assembly for formal adoption, e.g. a diplomatic conference. An important aspect of this regulatory work has been a strong emphasis on listening to the views of and seeking a consensus among its member states. This is because ultimately IMO rules will only be effective if they are adopted by states, and the best way to secure their adoption is to seek a general agreement. Finally, the regulations or rules are made mandatory in nature by specifying that they must be given effect either by enactment of national legislation or administrative action. Typically, a convention will come into force when ratified by a certain number of states and then become part of a state’s internal laws when the state has acceded to or ratified the convention.
The primary function of IMO is to develop and maintain a comprehensive regulatory framework for shipping and its remit today includes safety, environmental concerns, legal matters, technical cooperation, maritime security, and the efficiency of shipping. The most well-known aspect of the IMO’s work is the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). 1974 SOLAS requires Flag States to ensure that ships comply with its safety rules and accordingly issue a SOLAS Certificate documents that the ship has been surveyed and is fit to sail. The ship is also required to carry on board the relevant publications such as codes, conventions, and manuals. The master or the ship’s person in charge is responsible for the safety of the ship and should ensure that the crew is familiar with escape routes, has participated in life-saving drills, and is briefed on safety and emergency procedures.
3. Maritime Safety Initiatives by the IMO
Following a number of shipping disasters in the 1970s, the IMO decided to actively address the issue of maritime safety. This resulted in a number of new measures to prevent marine pollution and to improve the safety of shipping. The most important of these measures was the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which came into force in 1980 and has been updated and amended on numerous occasions since then. This single piece of legislation has brought about greater uniformity in applying safety of life and property at sea, for it had been recognized in the 1960s that variations in national maritime legislation can seriously distort the aims of a convention. Prior to the SOLAS Convention, there were no less than 62 conventions and agreements regulating various aspects of safety of life at sea, several of which were adopted in the immediate post-war period.
The practical outcome of these conventions was the establishment of the IMO safety of life at sea committee, responsible for the development and maintenance of a comprehensive regulatory framework for safety SOLAS; a single, harmonized framework governing construction, equipment and operation of ships throughout the world would be most effective. The first SOLAS convention was held in London in November 1974, and its success led to the establishment of the IMO/ILO joint maritime session which prepared a new consolidated text to replace the many treaties, the United Nations Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships, 1986. This was followed by the search for a convention which would equally apply to all ships without distinction through a unified regulatory framework, and the resultant convention adopted on the 1st of November 1974, was the Torremolinos Convention and Protocol relating to the International Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels which required new fishing vessels of 24m in length. These developments culminated in the adoption of the 1978 SOLAS convention in 1978, which replaced the original 1914 convention and the collision regulations.
3.1 International Conventions and Regulations
International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which was first introduced in 1914 in response to the sinking of Titanic, has gone through various changes and updates to adapt to the changing technology. The first and the most comprehensive update was in 1974 held in London. The convention has 13 chapters and 3 important annexes. Chapter 1 of the convention is the most important and deals with general provisions related to the administration of the convention and safety of the SOLAS treaty to other instruments deemed as an amendment to the convention. Chapter 2 focuses on the convention on construction, which shows how this treaty affects ship design and what the requirements ships have to follow during construction and materials used so as to be in line with the treaty. This can include various subtopics, but ISM focus is what material the ship should have on board. Chapter 2 also incorporates a tacit acceptance procedure to update or amend the convention. But still, chapter 3 provides the most comprehensive update on the effective dates and entries into force of new amendments or rules set down in this convention. However, most of the important rules for ISM are derived from the Organic Act that receives power through chapter 3 of the United States Code. This provision provides for the issuance of a merchant mariner’s document to all seamen so documented regulations for minimum safe manning of vessels would not enter into force until the United States is able to issue such a document for its own citizens and to ensure the nationality of seamen serving on ships of parties to the convention can be tracked.
The primary objective of introducing various conventions and regulations by the IMO is to ensure safety at sea and prevent injury or loss of life and to avoid damage to the environment and property. These conventions are not just regulations but a pact agreed upon by countries who are signatories to the conventions and regulations and hence have a binding to it. It is important to note that these conventions and regulations are applicable only to those vessels which fly the flag of the signatory country, and this in itself is an issue.
3.1.1 SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea) Convention
3.1.2 MARPOL (International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships)
3.1.3 STCW (International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers)
3.2 Implementation and Enforcement Mechanisms
A convention is only as good as the mechanism designed for its enforcement. No matter how comprehensive an international convention may be, its provisions will not have the intended effect unless there is a reasonable degree of uniformity in its implementation by member governments, and effective control of compliance with the mandatory requirements. The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) identified the need for an Implementation Code for the various conventions on the work of the Organization. This has been done for some conventions in the form of Assembly resolutions. An Implementation Code was adopted by the 1981 SOLAS Conference, which required the consultation procedure before amendment of the Convention to be followed for amendment of the Code. It was established by an MSC resolution that the Code should be developed simultaneously with the main instrument, to enable entry into force of the Convention and the Code to be as near simultaneous as possible. The Code contains basic requirements identifying the responsibilities of governments, the competent international organizations and other authorities in the field, controlling the operations of ships, control of the prevention of accidents involving ships and harmful substances, and a general requirement that relevant provisions of the convention should be made mandatory within a specified period.
3.2.1 Flag State Control
3.2.2 Port State Control
3.2.3 Role of Classification Societies
4. Impact and Effectiveness of the IMO’s Efforts
The IMO’s efforts have had a positive impact on the reduction of maritime accidents and casualties. To cite an example, the IMO implemented the International Safety Management Code (ISM) which came into force in 1998. This required all shipping companies to have a safety officer on board the ship, and a company security officer to develop, implement and assess a security system. This was a significant move towards accident prevention as the code required companies to assess and identify all possible risks to the ship, and establish safeguards. Prior to this, safety requirements were not standardized and often inadequate. The sinking of the Herald of Free Enterprise in 1987, a tragic accident which resulted in 193 deaths, is a good illustration of this. The ferry capsized shortly after leaving the Belgian port of Zeebrugge when the bow doors were left open, and water flooded the car deck. Although problems had been identified with the bow doors on other vessels, it had not been recognized that leaving the doors open would seriously compromise the vessel’s safety. This resulted in a redesign of the ship’s front to make it more weather tight, modification of the bow doors on similar ferries, and the development of an industry-wide code of practice. This is exactly the kind of measure the ISM code aims to achieve, and there have been no disasters of a similar nature on a ro-ro passenger vehicle since the code was introduced. It is evident the IMO’s efforts with respect to improvements in safety standards have been effective and have contributed towards making shipping safer. The Herald of Free Enterprise disaster, in comparison to the lack of serious incidents on ro-ro passenger vessels in recent years, indicates an increasingly safer environment in which to work and travel.
4.1 Reduction of Maritime Accidents and Casualties
Of equal significance is the attempts made to enhance the safety of vessel operation. This involves efforts to reduce the probability of accidents occurring in addition to minimising their potential impacts. An example of the former would be the attempts to prevent collisions through the establishment COLREGS convention. This convention, which sought to standardise navigation rules across the industry, was seen as a significant move towards higher level of safety at sea and has been heavily enforced and respected across the industry in both its implementation to new vessels and its integration into the training of seafarers.
An target of the global shipping industry is to lessen the number of casualties and accidents as a result of accidents. This has been largely due to the IMO in its attempts to enhance the safety of vessels, both in terms of design/construct and operation. Improvements in vessel construction have come with the establishment of compulsory safety measures which must be met by all vessel builders. These safety measures have culminated in the present SOLAS convention with includes chapters on fire safety, the integrity of the vessel as a complete, and even the safety of certain high risk vessel types like tankers and passenger ships. These efforts have had an instant and significant impact with the years following the creation of the IMO seeing a regular decline in the frequency of maritime accidents. Even when we consider the dramatic increase in world sea trade over the same period, the advancements in vivo safety becomes even more apparent as a decrease in the relative risk of an accident occurring.
4.2 Improvement of Safety Standards
The main strategy employed by the IMO is the establishment of an international safety framework. This is embodied in the provisions of the SOLAS Convention, the keystone of maritime safety. The convention is generally prescriptive in nature, setting out the measures to be adopted by national administrations to improve the safety of shipping. The main strength of SOLAS is that it is applicable to ships of all flags, including those of states not parties to the convention. This encourages a ‘flag of convenience’ ship registered in a state not party to SOLAS to meet the required standard, so that it may trade with the ships of convention parties. The concept of ‘no more favourable treatment’ plays a role in this, whereby ships are subject to inspection when calling at ports of states party to SOLAS, but if their construction, equipment etc. has been shown to meet an equivalent standard, then no more favourable treatment is required. If taken seriously by governments, this could amount to an indirect system of getting the various substandard conventions applied to ships within the developing world, to be not applied at all.
Due to the inherently prescriptive nature of SOLAS, IMO output in the area of safety standards has been predominantly convention-based. However, there has been a significant trend towards the use of goal and risk-based concepts in place of the traditional prescriptive approach. Goal-based standards set functional requirements to meet an acceptable level of safety, allowing a variety of designs and methods of compliance. This is particularly important in preventing the continued use of substandard ships. The concept of risk-based standards has been particularly successful in the updating of conventions, to meet the changing safety risks of new maritime technologies. An example of the above can be found in the development of the new SOLAS chapter on ‘intact stability’ and the existence of rules to protect seafarers’ health and safety. The modification of safety standards has the continuing benefit of maintaining their relevance to safety risks and new technologies.
4.3 Challenges and Criticisms
The IMO is an international organization with 169 member states. Its goal and mission is to create a regulatory framework for the shipping industry to conserve the marine environment, mankind’s cornerstone, through the safeguarding of safety and security at sea and the prevention of human injury and loss of life, and avoidance of damage to the environment and to property.
It has created a number of treaties and conventions to help achieve its goals.
Recognizing the complexities of modern shipping, modern-day challenges, and real shortcomings in international shipping regulations, and a historic reluctance to flag new laws and regulation, the IMO fully understands the constraints in enforcing its standards and goals. It is all too easy for member states to neglect and fail to enforce some regulation coming from the IMO, often through fear of the impact on their own economies if it brings shipping business to a stop. This has been particularly relevant in developing countries as ship owners will try to register their ships in countries where there are few regulations so as to save time and money, although there is a highly noticeable trend of change in this area. Brazil is a good example of a developing country that has improved its international shipping standing by registering to the higher standards of regulation in the IMO and accepting a duty to enforcement. The IMO has set up a technical cooperation committee to help in situations like this and to encourage effective enforcement of IMO standards, using local, national, and where necessary, international funds to facilitate change and create long-term benefits to individual member states, maritime industries, and the environment.
4.3.1 Compliance Issues
4.3.2 Inadequate Resources and Capacity
4.3.3 Influence of Industry Stakeholders