Green Economy in a Blue World-Full Report

to recognize the importance of building maritime capacity in achieving the MDGs and to ensure that consideration is given to the inclusion of the maritime sector in Official Development Assistance (ODA) programmes; • Member States to voluntarily use the Maritime Capacity Checklist, and the Maritime Capacity Analysis tool, to analyze and assess the levels of maritime capacity progress in developing maritime capacity over time; • IMO’s Technical Cooperation Committee to give high priority to those activities, which not only promote the early ratification and effective implementation of IMO instruments but also contribute to the attainment of the MDGs, taking into account the special needs of the LDCs and SIDS, and the particular maritime transport needs of Africa, and ensure that these needs are reflected in the ITCP; and • All IMO Member States and international organizations concerned to provide and, as the case may be, increase their financial and in-kind support for the delivery of the ITCP individually and through bilateral and multilateral development aid programmes. Ithasbeenshownthat IMO’s technical cooperation activities contribute, by promoting effective and uniform implementation and enforcement of maritime standards, to at least five of the MDGs, namely: eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; promote gender equality and empower women; combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases; ensure environmental sustainability; and develop a global partnership for development. To help the foregoing objectives, IMO founded the World Maritime University in 1983 (Malmo, Sweden) and, later on, the IMO International Maritime Law Institute (Msida, Malta) and the International Maritime Safety, Security and Environment Academy (Genoa, Italy), all ofwhich have the sole aimof providing advanced training for men and women involved in maritime administration, education and management, particularly those from developing countries. It may be noted that IMO was recently included in the OECD DAC list of ODA organizations and this further emphasizes and recognizes IMO’s role as an important partner in technical cooperation and development assistance. 3.2 Building effective national, regional and international institutions As discussed above, maritime transport is probably unique as a ‘blue world’ industry in that there is already widespread acceptance and recognition – among governments and industry

of the environment from such operations (IMO, 2012d). Indeed, no less than 21 of those instruments deal exclusivelywith environmental protection, with two other treaties (on salvage and wreck removal having environmental benefits also). While the levels of ratification of such IMO instruments is not as high as for SOLAS, MARPOL and STCW– each of which today covers 99 per cent of the world’s merchant fleet – the entire body of IMO conventions provides for the universally applicable regulations enabling shipping to operate on a level-playing field. From a normative perspective, therefore, there is every indication that shipping should and will continue to be regulated by IMO, taking account of technological advances, industry practice and the needs and aspirations of society at large. A further enabling mechanism in the maritime world is IMO’s provision of technical assistance to developing countries – with the support of donors, industry and civil society interests – to help them achieve effective implementation and enforcement of global standards onboard their ships, in their ports and along their coasts. Such support is generated through IMO’s Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP), with the aim to assist developing countries build up their human and institutional capacities for uniform and effective implementation of IMO’s regulatory framework (IMO, 2012m). By fostering capacity-building in the maritime sector, the ITCP helps countries ensure safe, secure and efficient shipping services and protect their waters and coasts from the environmental degradation caused by ships and other maritime-related activities. It is, therefore, both IMO’s regulatory framework and its technical cooperation programme which contribute to sustainable socio-economic development with, for the ITCP, the emphasis on meeting the special assistance maritime needs of Africa, SIDS and LDCs. In this regard, IMO’s highest organ – the Assembly – has adopted several resolutions on technical cooperation, including A.901(21) on IMO and Technical Cooperation in the 2000s and A.986(24) on The Importance and Funding of Technical Cooperation as a Means to Support the United Nations Millennium Declaration and Development Goals. Furthermore, resolution A.1006(25) on The Linkage between the Integrated Technical Co-operation Programme and the Millennium Development Goals requested or encouraged: • Member States and donor organizations

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