BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AS the Federation’s Department of Maritime Affairs continues to keep abreast with international standards, further development of its human resource has recently been achieved.
Some two months ago, the Department received a shot in the arm with Barrister-at-Law Agatha James-Andries completing her Masters Degree in Maritime Law at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Maritime Law Institute in Malta.
This time however, the focus is on the Director of Maritime Affairs, McClean Hobson, who has successfully completed the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Auditors Course held in Dominica from June 22-26, 2009.
In an interview with SKNVibes, Hobson said, “It’s no point ratifying maritime instruments and not seeing about their implementation and enforcement. In this way, there will never be a safe, secure and clean marine environment.”
He explained that since the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development invited the IMO to develop binding measures to ensure ships of all flag states meet international rules and standards so as to give full and complete effect to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), as well as to the provisions of relevant IMO conventions, the outcome has been the establishment of the Volunteer IMO Audit Scheme.
“Under this scheme,” he added, “IMO member states are free to volunteer to be audited at any time. When this is done, Qualified IMO Auditors will be required to conduct an audit on that particular state to ensure effective implementation and enforcement of IMO mandatory instruments such as Safety of Life at Sea, Standard of Training Certification and Watch-keeping for Seafarers, and Maritime Pollution.
“According to the findings of the audit, that state would be assisted in the following areas: implementation and enforcement of IMO instruments, technical assistance and capacity building.”
In the case of St. Kitts and Nevis, Hobson opined that “we have ratified 32 IMO maritime conventions and one of the only ways to ensure their effective implementation is to undergo an IMO audit.
“This,” he emphasised, “will determine, apart from technical and capacity-building needs, exactly where we stand in relation to our obligations under the various IMO instruments. An audit for St.Kitts and Nevis will definitely be given serious consideration.”
