After having read the Editorial of Business Recorder Monday the 20th August, 2007, I thought it prudent to discuss the subject and support the views of Editorial to make Directorate General Ports and Shipping autonomous.
The word "Administration" ordinarily means the conduct and execution of the role and functions of an office project or institution and in broader terms it normally refers to the Government. The word 'Maritime Administration" would refer to that department, directorate or agency of the Government that oversees the shipping and maritime activities.
When we say "Maritime Safety Administration" we mean the Administration that looks after the safety at sea and protection of the marine environment. In this case the word "Safety" relates to safety of life, property and environment at sea.
However, when we refer to maritime administration we cover a broader range of subjects that will also include economic and developmental aspects of shipping. In Pakistan Directorate General of Ports and Shipping was established in 1962 and is responsible for Maritime administration being signatory to 27 IMO conventions and to act as regulator for Ports and Shipping industry based at Karachi.
I now try to identify the range of activities that will fall under the purview of maritime administration. They can be summarised as: 1. Registration of Ships; 2. Tonnage measurement; 3. Registration/deletion of mortgage and issue of transcript 4. Survey and certification of ships including approval of plans and manuals (L.L. SOLAS, MARPOL, etc 5. Examination and certification of marine personnel (STCW95) 6. Article of Agreement (Crew Agreement), health, hygiene and safety at work; 7.
Registration, survey and certification of fishing vessels, 8. Examination and certification of fishing vessel personnel (STCW-F) 9. Registration of yachts and pleasure craft, regulate pleasure industry as required for safety, including training requirement for persons serving on yachts; 10. Safety of inland shipping (rivers and lakes); 11. Type-test and approval of locally manufactured marine equipment and safety appliances, including approval of life raft service stations and workshop that services and certifies fire fighting installations and appliances, 12. Safety of offshore rigs and mobile units, 13.
Recognition of classification societies and delegation of certain functions with monitoring provisions 14. Casualty investigation 15. Representation and co-ordination with IMO/ILO/ ITU/INMARSAT/IALA/IHO/UNCTAD and other international bodies 16. Promotional aspects such as training facilities, ship building and repair facilities, ship breaking industry, acquisition policy, protection,. Incentive, subsidy etc 17. Port state control (inspection of safety standards of foreign flag ships) and random inspection of own ships 18.
Regulate handling of dangerous goods in ports and harbours, 19. Survey coastal water and provide charts and data for own waters, 20. Provide necessary navigational aids and facilities along the coast, 21. Develop VTS, broadcast weather and navigational warnings and provide radio medical service, 22. Provide (humanitarian) SAR along the coast, 23.
Combat accidental pollution with legal measures to recover damages, 24. Removal of wrecks with legal measures for recovery of cost, 25. Prevent unlawful activities such as slave trade, human trade in illegal immigrants, piracy, terrorism,, drug trafficking etc; 26. Intervene in certain cases, 27. Protect and preserve living, mineral and other resources within the EEZ or Continental shelf.
The State is also expected to operate safe and efficient port facilities in its own interest to meet the needs of the trade and commerce. The primary role of the Port Authority (the administration of the port) is to provide service to the Port users. Though the Port Authority shall control all movements within the port and look after safety of all such operations, the ultimate responsibility of maritime safety and protection of the environment will still rest with the national Maritime Administration ie Directorate General of Ports and Shipping.
The Port authorities do not approve intervention and acts as independent authority in contravention of IMO conventions, thus sidelining the role of Directorate as regulator of Ports and Shipping and merely reducing the role as nonentity with support of Ministry at Islamabad.
In order to accomplish the role as a coastal state, specially those relating to SAR, contingency plan to combat pollution, prevention of unlawful acts and intervention etc, it is necessary to have a disciplined multiple role organisation in line with Defence services. Most countries have recognised this factor and developed "Coastguard" as a paramilitary organisation.
Normally in peacetime the Coastguard will work under the Transport (Ministry or Department) but as a law enforcement agency will also maintain link and co-ordination with police, Justice, Treasury, Fishery, etc. The Coastguard is essential for protection of fisheries and other economic interests within the EEZ. However, in case of war the Coastguard often becomes a part of the navy and may be used for coastal defence and port security. In Pakistan the role is assigned to MSA, which also do not co-ordinate with Directorate.
It is also quite common in many countries for the hydrographic section of the Navy to conduct survey and prepare charts, tide tables and other navigational data. They shall of course maintain close link with the maritime administration. Informatively this aspect of providing appropriate chart and other navigational information along with weather forecast have now been included in Chapter V if SOLAS 74.
Fishing (as a resource) policy at international level is looked after by FAO (Food & Agriculture Organisation) though safety at sea and protection of the marine environment is till looked after by the IMO. At national level fisheries (as a policy for preservation, protection and planned exploitation) will possibly be looked after by a different ministry or department.
The relevant department will determine the TAC (total allowable catch) keeping in view the national interest and this will automatically determine the optimum size of the fishing fleet. This is one reason whey the Maritime Administration/Registry of Ships will only register those fishing vessels that are licensed by the Fisheries Department. However, once a sea going fishing vessel is registered then it is the responsibility of the Maritime Administration to ensure safety at sea and protection of the marine environment through usual process of survey certification.
In respect of training and certification of sea going fishermen, the Maritime Administration is concerned with the subjects of Navigation, Engineering, Stability, Seamanship, Communication, Safety and Environment. The professional aspects of fishing such as the recognition of fishing grounds use of fishing gears and equipment fishing techniques fish processing preservation and hygiene are matters for the Fisheries Department.
The examination and certification can be jointly conducted by the two departments or first by the fisheries department on the art and skill of fishing and then the final part of the examination by the Marine Department. In some cases the mandatory sea service on fishing vessels will be considered to have taken care of the fishing part and the examination and certification will be conducted solely by the Marine Department for safety at sea and prevention of marine pollution.
The circumstances of all countries would not be the same. There are land locked countries that may also have maritime aspirations. From the range of maritime activities, it should not be difficult to identify the elements that will apply to such countries. There may be also countries that have the access to sea but may not want to operate a register. Still they will have certain maritime obligations to meet.
The business of ship registration, is for the state to decide whether it wants to operate a restrictive register solely owned by its own nationals or in some cases may be with more than 50% owned by locals. The ships will of course have a genuine link with the flag and the Administration may even specify the need for certain number of crew being flag nationals. Normally the legislation shall specify that a ship can be registered provided more than 50% of the shares are owned by local nationals or by a company whose majority shares are owned by locals.
In the other case the legislation will simply state that a ship can be registered provided a company registered in the country owns it. It will normally not specify anything about the nationals who own such company giving a wide range of flexibility for foreigners to set up a company or to own an existing company and register ships under the ownership of the company. The success of "open registry" will depend on the tax incentive (probably none) and a greater degree of ease, convenience and flexibility offered by the Administration.
We have to consider the matter in the light of our national interest. A coastal state with large volume of trade and no lack of entrepreneurs has no reason to go for an open registry. A land locked country or a small island state will probably find it more to their interest to have an "open" register because the fees generated by the register will be substantial to their notional context.
An underdeveloped country (now a days referred to as a developing country) with a large population (abundance of human resource) may find it effective to have an "open" register and at the same time have training facilities to sell their manpower to foreign ship owners whose ships are registered there. In every case we will find that "open" registers are designed to grow a fleet under the flag in excess of genuine trading need of the country.
The open registers do not necessarily have to be sub standard. It is for the Administration to find ways and means as to how to make the Flag attractive without compromising the standards. The administration must maintain a policy of transparency in the sense that it should not hesitate in giving out any information that relate to maritime safety in respect of any the ships on its register.
The Administration should also authorise classification societies to give information in respect of any of the statutory functions that the societies are authorities to conduct on behalf of the Administration. Interested parties should be able to obtain a transcript of a ship on payment of nominal fees. Pakistan is in dire need of promoting ship owning under its flag and lure private entrepreneurs as ship owning is in only Public Sector thus we need parallel or open registry to induce private entrepreneurs and enacted monopoly ordinance be strictly enforced.
The registrar will normally require the proof of eligibility to own a ship under the register and then establish the identity of the ship through a "Certificate of Survey" which will outline the dimension and other main features of the ship including the particulars of the machinery. The ownership has to be established through a "Bill of Sale" for existing ships and for a new building the copy of the contract along with the delivery certificate.
The ship must also have an international Tonnage Certificate. The ship has to be either "free of encumbrances" or consent from the mortgagee to carry forward the remaining mortgage to the new register. The ship will be marked with the IMO or official number (and in some cases also with tonnage) as required by the registrar for identification purpose (in case of any piracy).
Some countries may also insist on a P&I cover for the ship before any statutory certificate can be issued. For an existing ship the "Certificate of Registry" shall not be issued until a deletion certificate is recovered from the previous registry.
Ships can also be registered under "bare boat charter." Our MSO 2001 provides in which case the ship has to be chartered on bare boat basis by a company eligible to own a ship under the register. The charter party has to allow the registration in a place of choice of the charterer to which the owner as well as primary register must have no objection. The consent of the mortgagee, if any, will also be required.
The "Certificate of Registry under Bare boat charter" will record the name of the charterer. It is also probable that the name of the primary registry will be noted in the certificate. The bare boat charterer or their managers will be able to operate as if they are the owners except that they will not be allowed to raise any capital against the ship (because it is not their property) and no mortgage can be recorded on a bare boat charter register.
Every mortgagee will look at how well the interest of the mortgagee is protected. A good register must not allow any change of status eg change of owners, change of name, change of flag, a second registration under bare boat charter, deletion etc without the knowledge of the registered mortgagee. In fact we require the official consent of the mortgagee before any such change is made.
Though not very common but ships may also be registered when under construction. You may be aware that the ship building contract normally incorporates five states of payment, the first being when the contract is signed, second when the keel is laid and so on with the final payment on delivery (in some cases at the end of the guarantee period). When the buyer wants to raise money to pay for the final two or three stages of payment when he may register the ship so that the mortgage can be registered against the ship. In the "Certificate of Registry of a vessel under Construction" the names of the builders as well as the buyer will be recorded. The provisions of the contract will determine the question of ownership of the vessel at any state.
Because of reasons explained above we can understand that it has become a competitive business to operate ships register in order to make the register more attractive, efforts are made to simplify procedures. This in some cases led to unethical practices leading to registration of pirated ships.
(To be concluded)