REPORT
INGENIEUR
Malaysia as Council
Member of International
Maritime Organisation
By Ir. Tan Bee Hong
Malaysia was in the news again in the maritime
arena when she was elected to the International
Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council again
for the sixth term at the 29 th IMO General
Assembly in London in November 2015.
Malaysia’s Minister of Transport, who attended
the assembly, informed the press that Malaysia
plays a crucial role in ensuring the safety of the
Straits of Malacca and the protection of marine
environment.
The Straits of Malacca is an important
conduit for international shipping and one of
the busiest shipping routes in the world with
more than 25% of global trade and more than
80,000 vessels transiting it annually.
Malaysia has been a member of IMO
since 1971. As a council member of IMO,
Malaysia enjoys certain privileges in respect
of planning and approving of IMO programmes
and activities, raising maritime issues and
evaluating reports of main committees during
the Council meetings.
B
ecause of the international nature of the
shipping industry, it has long been recognized
that action to improve safety in maritime
operations is more effective if carried out at the
international level rather than by individual countries
acting unilaterally and without co-ordination.
It was against this background that a
conference held by the United Nations in 1948
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adopted a convention establishing the IMO as the
first ever international body devoted exclusively to
maritime matters.
The overall objectives are summed up in the
IMO slogan: Safe, secure and efficient shipping on
clean oceans. The IMO is the only United Nations
specialized agency to have its Headquarters in the
United Kingdom. It currently (Dec 2015) has 171
Member States and three Associate Members.
Its governing body, the Assembly, meets once
every two years. Between sessions, the Council,
consisting of 40 Member Governments elected by
the Assembly, acts as IMO’s governing body.
IMO is a technical organisation and most of its
work is carried out in a number of committees and
sub-committees.
The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) was one
of the main organs, along with the Assembly and
Council, established by the 1948 Convention on
IMO. Today, the MSC deals with all matters relating
to the safety of shipping, as well as addressing
maritime security issues, piracy and armed
robbery against ships.
The Marine Environment Protection Committee
(MEPC) was established by the Assembly in
November 1973. It is responsible for co-ordinating
the Organisation’s activities in the prevention
and control of pollution and damage to the
environment caused by ships.
There are seven sub-committees: SubCommittee on Human Element, Training and
Watchkeeping (HT W); Sub - Committee on
Implementation of IMO Instruments (III); Sub-