IMO holds national workshop for officials of Iraqi maritime administrations

As a result of the efforts of the Embassy of the Republic of Iraq in the United Kingdom and its Naval Attaché, with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in London.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO), in cooperation with the Iraqi Ministry of Transport / General Company for Iraqi Ports, held a national workshop for maritime administrations on the application of mandatory auditing for IMSAS member states, which will be held in Basra for the period 24- 30/05/2024.

In his opening speech, the Director General of the General Company of Ports of Iraq referred to the role of the Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and the efforts of the Permanent Representative to the Organization, Ambassador Mohammed Jaafar Al-Sadr, which resulted in the establishment of this workshop for senior officials in the Iraqi Maritime Administration.

The workshop (research topic) includes a national workshop for administrative officials to assist Iraq in carrying out the audit, and post-audit work by the IMO member state to address the results of the audit, and this workshop also aims to provide the Maritime Administration of Iraq with advice on the structure and mechanism needed to enhance the capacity and effectiveness of the maritime administration in implementing the provisions of the mandatory tools of the International Maritime Organization and the IMO Tools Implementation Code (III Code).

This workshop also aims to assess the Iraqi maritime sector, as part of efforts to re-include Iraq in the white list of IMO member states, enabling Iraq to re-raise its flag on Iraqi ships, facilitate the entry of Iraqi seafarers to all ports, and enhance the capacity of Iraqi ports to receive ships.

The workshop included interactive discussion sessions with representatives from Iraqi naval formations, including the Arabian Gulf Academy, the Maritime Transport Company, the Oil Tanker Company, the Iraqi Higher Maritime Authority, and the General Company for Ports of Iraq.

The workshop was led and delivered by two lecturers from the IMO Group of Experts:

• Chief Marine Engineer / Mueen Al-Zoubi.
• Captain Atid Abdul Razzaq.

The panellists from IMO expressed their appreciation for the organization carried out by the State Ports Company of Iraq and the commitment to attend and participate, which reflects the dedication of the senior management of the Iraqi Ports Company in ensuring Iraq’s compliance with IMO instruments.
The workshop was attended and accompanied by the organization’s experts by the Maritime Attaché and Deputy Permanent Representative of the Republic of Iraq to the International Maritime Organization, Captain Mazen Al-Kaabi.