An international summit called to address the crew change crisis brought about by coronavirus pandemic lockdowns will be held in London on July 9.
The meeting is led by the UK Government and aims to involve political and business leaders from across the globe.
It is designed as an opportunity “to reflect on the impact of the pandemic on the global shipping industry, and what governments and industry must do to protect the welfare of crew workers around the world”, according to the UK’s Department for Transport.
Currently around 1.2m seafarers are in service on about 55,000 vessels worldwide. Usually 200,000 of them change each month as their period of service on board comes to an end.
The International Chamber of Shipping is calling on all ships to sound their horns on 8 July, the day before the summit.
“Globally there are now 400,000 seafarers who are either stranded at sea and have overrun their contracts or are at shore waiting to start their tours of duty. The 8th July is a perfect moment to remind those politicians who are meeting to consider the impact of Covid-19 to classify these unsung heroes of global trade as key workers and to instigate seafarer air-bridges to enable safe travel,” said Guy Platten, secretary-general of the ICS.
Many countries still do not recognise seafarers as key worker. This means they are unable to embark or disembark ships because of national travel restrictions.
This year, suicide has become the foremost cause of deaths amongst seafarers, according to UK charity, the Seafarers Hospital Society.
As a way of solving the impasse the ICS is pushing the regulator-approved 12-step crew change ‘road map’ now being circulated by the International Maritime Organization, which many national governments have so far chosen to ignore.
“The solutions do not need money or complicated negotiations. Governments must now implement these protocols,” said Mr Platten. “If bureaucracy continues to get in the way, what has already become a humanitarian crisis at sea, and is fast becoming an economic one, will lead to severe consequences for an already overstretched global economy.”
Source:hongkongmaritimehub
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