• Home
  • News
  • Regional maritime piracy agreement broadened to cover other illicit maritime activity
  • 2017 January 13 18:02

    Regional maritime piracy agreement broadened to cover other illicit maritime activity

    ​IMO has organized and funded exercises dealing with transnational organized crimes at sea, for maritime law enforcement officials from Djibouti Code of Conduct signatory States.

    An international agreement that has been instrumental in repressing piracy and armed robbery against ships in the western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden has seen its scope significantly broadened to cover other illicit maritime activities, including human trafficking and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

    A high-level meeting of signatories to the Djibouti Code of Conduct, held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (10 to 12 January 2017) has adopted a revised Code of Conduct, which will be known as the “Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct 2017”.

    The participatory States agreed to work together, with support from IMO and other stakeholders, to build national and regional capacity to address wider maritime security issues, as a basis for sustainable development of the maritime sector.
     
    The Jeddah Amendment recognizes the important role of the “blue economy” including shipping, seafaring, fisheries and tourism in supporting sustainable economic growth, food security, employment, prosperity and stability. But it expresses deep concern about crimes of piracy, armed robbery against ships and other illicit maritime activity, including fisheries crime, in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. Such acts present grave dangers to the safety and security of persons and ships at sea and to the protection of the marine environment.

    The revised code of conduct builds on the earlier Code, which was adopted under the auspices of IMO in 2009. The Jeddah Amendment calls on the signatory States to cooperate to the fullest possible extent to repress transnational organized crime in the maritime domain, maritime terrorism, illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing and other illegal activities at sea.

    This will include information sharing; interdicting ships and/or aircraft suspected of engaging in such crimes; ensuring that any persons committing or intending to commit such illicit activity are apprehended and prosecuted; and facilitating proper care, treatment, and repatriation for seafarers, fishermen, other shipboard personnel and passengers involved as victims.  
     
    The transnational organized crime referred to in the Code includes arms trafficking; trafficking in narcotics and psychotropic substances; illegal trade in wildlife; crude oil theft; human trafficking and smuggling; and illegal dumping of toxic waste.

    A key article of the Code includes the intention of participants to develop and implement, as necessary, a national strategy for the development of the maritime sector and a sustainable “blue economy” that generates revenue, employment and stability. They also pledge to develop national maritime security policies; and national legislation to ensure safe and secure operation of port facilities as well as effective protection of the marine environment and sustainable management of marine living resources.

    Under new measures relating to the national organization of maritime security, Participants commit to establishing multi-agency, multidisciplinary national maritime security and facilitation committees, with similar arrangements at port level, to develop action plans and to implement effective security procedures.

    A further pledge covers the intention of participants to liaise and co-operate with States (which could include the flag State, State of suspected origin of the perpetrators, the State of nationality of persons on board the ship, and the State of ownership of cargo and other stakeholders) and to coordinate activities with each other to facilitate rescue, interdiction, investigation, and prosecution.
     
    The Jeddah Meeting was attended by high-level representatives from 17 Djibouti code of Conduct signatory States, France (Reunion) and four observer States, as well as observers from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC); the European Union; the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) and the East African Standby Force.

    The meeting was opened by Vice Admiral Awwad Eid Al-Aradi Al-Balawi, the Head of the Border Guard of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Mr. Chris Trelawny, the Special Advisor to the Secretary-General of the Organization. The Meeting was chaired by Vice Admiral Awwad Eid Al-Aradi Al-Balawi, the Head of the Border Guard of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

    The Revised Code of Conduct was adopted by all 18 States, who also adopted resolutions covering technical co-operation and assistance; enhancing training in the region; and expressions of appreciation to the host country, Saudi Arabia.

    The Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct 2017 was signed on Thursday (12 January) by 12 of the 17 participating States eligible to sign. The 12 States who signed were: Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Jordan, Madagascar, Maldives, Mozambique, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania and Yemen.
     
    The Djibouti Code of Conduct was adopted under IMO auspices in 2009. Training and other capacity-building activities implemented under the auspices of the Djibouti Code of Conduct have been credited with contributing to the reduction of piracy in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, alongside the efforts of merchant ships to implement IMO guidance and best management practices, naval forces continuing to deter and disrupt pirate activities and States continuing to prosecute suspected pirates and increasing their maritime law-enforcement capabilities.
     
    IMO – the International Maritime Organization – is the United Nations specialized agency with responsibility for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution by ships.


2023 September 26

18:07 Fincantieri signs a EUR 800 million facility agreement
17:53 Shortage of sea transport vessels in Russia estimated at over 400 units
17:36 MV Ballard becomes first Klaveness Combination Carriers vessel equipped with Silverstream Technologies air lubrication system
17:16 Shell completes Gibraltar's first cruise ship LNG bunkering
17:09 Okskaya Sudoverf shipyard launches second bilge water removing ship of project RST38 for Rosmorport
16:45 Port of Kiel opens two shore power facilities at the Ostuferhafen
16:28 Scandlines Germany officially receives the first intermediate ROV class certificate without the presence of conventional divers
16:07 Murmansk Commercial Seaport handled 1 million tonnes of coastwise cargo year-to-date
15:40 HMM introduces direct service between Korea and Indonesia
15:24 MOL and Idemitsu to launch demonstration test on recycling of marine plastic waste
14:32 Crowley Engineering Services wins design, production contracts for Crescent Towing
14:14 Admiral Makarov SUMIS to install simulator for training specialists of maritime autonomous surface ships navigation
13:42 Bunker One and Acelen launch bunkering operations outside the Port of Itaqui, Brazil
13:11 Port Houston container volume down 20% in August 2023
12:55 RZD and FESCO achieved record high daily result having dispatched 1.3 thousand TEU in 10 container trains from Commercial Port of Vladivostok
12:41 JSE, “K”Line, MOL and NYK partner to establish global liquefied hydrogen supply chain
12:21 MarineMax to expand superyacht services in Greece
11:40 Light Structures teams up with DNV to deliver structural integrity and digital twin services
11:27 2nd Ship Repair, Modernization and Components Conference opened in Saint-Petersburg
11:10 Wind-propulsion installations poised to surpass 50 mark in early 2024
11:01 Aktau Sea Commercial Port (Kazakhstan) obtains status of internationally important port
10:45 Bay-Houston Towing announces purchase of Port Arthur and Lake Charles operations from Seabulk
10:23 MAN Energy Solutions has filed 37 ammonia tech patent applications
09:58 “K” Line announces acquisition of third-party certification for CO2 reduction using marine biofuels and completion of a certificate issuance system
09:42 Mechel reports restructuring 320-million-dollar loan
09:19 RF Navy's Northern Fleet trains countering maritime unmanned vehicles

2023 September 25

18:07 Meyer Werft starts construction of the new cruise ship for NYK Cruises
17:35 Port of Vancouver cargo volumes increase by 11% in H1 2023
17:24 Number of ships servicing FESCO’s direct line between Saint-Petersburg and ports of China and India to double by year end
17:13 MOL, PETRONAS and MISC set the stage for the development of liquefied CO2 carriers
16:18 Throughput of Turkish ports in 8M’23 totaled 349.3 million tonnes, down 4.3% YoY
15:31 Ecospray's two Carbon Capture technologies successfully tested onboard
15:01 ADNOC and TAQA reach financial close on sustainable water supply project
14:53 Samara based Nefteflot to build three multipurpose dry cargo ships of RSD34L design
14:35 ITOCHU executes MoU for ammonia bunkering safety for ammonia-fueled container carrier
14:12 Alfa Laval joins a project to develop and produce the world's first 10 MW green hydrogen production facility offshore in the North Sea
13:48 Babcock’s LGE business wins world first contract for ecoCO2 cargo handling system
13:20 Oboronlogistics and Chinese manufacturers of spare parts and equipment reached preliminary agreements on direct supplies
12:14 All 120 workers rescued after Nile cruise ship accident in Egypt
11:42 China's shipbuilding output up 16.9 percent to 27.98 dwt in the first eight months of this year
11:24 COSL enters into the rigs purchase and sale contracts
11:13 Astrakhan based shipyard of USC launches chemical tanker Azimuth-1
10:58 Port of Rotterdam and Yokogawa start study to increase energy and resource efficiency across industries
10:27 COSCO SHIPPING launches the automotive industry digital supply chain platform
09:42 Port of Liepaja throughput in 8M’2023 fell by 9% Y-o-Y to 4.57 million tonnes
09:18 Total throughput of China’s sea and river ports in 8M’2023 rose by 8.4% YoY

2023 September 24

17:26 Pyxis Tankers announces sale of product tanker
15:47 ITOCHU announces execution of MoU for ammonia bunkering safety for ammonia-fueled container carrier
14:19 Elyse Energy announces the opening of an e-methanol plant on the Roches-Roussillon chemical hub
12:05 Joint development of AI-powered automatic daft survey application
11:58 Candela's C-8 foiling craft covered 420 nm in a day
10:31 ITOCHU signs MoU with Peninsula to develop ammonia bunkering in Spain

2023 September 23

15:23 Hapag-Lloyd to enhance connectivity at sea with Starlink satellite Internet
13:41 Hanwha Ocean inks 4-way deal on development of liquefied CO2 carrier
12:09 Vessels are among the first in the world to demonstrate the potential of hydrogen fuel cells
10:17 ABB to power Samskip’s new hydrogen-fueled container vessels

2023 September 22

19:41 IAA PortNews’ summary of past week news
18:00 PETRONAS, MOL and MISC to jointly develop LCO2 carriers for CCS projects
17:06 Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Shanghai unveil Implementation Plan Outline for first trans-Pacific green shipping corridor
16:32 Workers protest against HHLA’s partial sale to MSC
16:25 ZIM offers direct service between WCSA and Savannah
16:07 Exports of Russian fish products in 8M’23 increased by 4% YoY to 1.4 million tonnes
15:49 Construction begins on Crowley-ESVAGT wind farm service vessel
15:21 APM Terminals Apapa – Ibdan rail connection opens for congestion-free business
14:51 Ascenz Marorka weather routing solution to equip the entire fleet of Clean Products Tankers Alliance
14:22 Guangzhou Port Group and Jiangsu Port Group sign a strategic cooperation framework agreement
13:59 Throughput of port Shanghai (China) in 8M’2023 rose by 10% YoY
13:41 A.P. Moller – Maersk opens new warehouse in Douala, Cameroon
13:12 Samsung Heavy Industries develops laser high-speed welding robot for LNG vessels
12:54 Container throughput of Hong Kong port (China) in 8M’2023 fell by 15% YoY