A new partnership between International Maritime Organization (IMO), the World Customs Organization, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe and the International Organization for Standardization has been signed to support increased maritime digitization.
The partnership agreement which has been effective since 15 March paves the way for updating the IMO Reference Data Model and for its further development towards harmonization of data standards in other areas, beyond the FAL Convention, such as exchanging operational data that could help facilitate just-in-time operation of ships.
Just-in-time operation allows ships to optimise their speed so that they arrive at their destination port when their berth is ready for them, thereby saving energy and cutting costs and emissions, IMO said.
The Parties of this agreement have already been cooperating to develop the IMO Reference Data Model, which is a key element of the IMO Compendium on Facilitation and Electronic Business and covers the reporting requirements defined in the FAL Convention to support transmission, receipt, and response of information required for the arrival, stay, and departure of ships, persons, and cargo via electronic data exchange. This work ensures interoperability between the respective standards of each organization.
Kenya has been on the track in the implementation of the Maritime Single Window System.
Mr. Amos Wang’ora, chief executive officer of the Kenya Trade Network Agency (KenTrade), the implementing agency, told the Freight Logistics magazine, in an interview late last year said that the Kenya’s system would go live in March this year.
The system is a mandatory requirement for national governments to introduce electronic information exchange between ships and ports, which came into effect from 8 April 2019. This is aimed at making cross-border trade simpler and the logistics chain more efficient, for the more than 10 billion tons of goods which are traded by sea annual
The requirement, under International Maritime Convention’s (IMO’s) Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL Convention), is part of a package of amendments under the revised Annex to the FAL Convention, adopted in 2016.
“The new FAL Convention requirement for all Public Authorities to establish systems for the electronic exchange of information related to maritime transport marks a significant move in the maritime industry and ports towards a digital maritime world, reducing the administrative burden and increasing the efficiency of maritime trade and transport,” said IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim in an earlier statement.
KenTrade signed a partnership agreement with TradeMark East Africa (TMEA) for the enhancement of Kenya’s Single Window System to improve on its performance and eventually enable faster and efficient trade processes.
Ahmed Farah, country director for TMEA Kenya, an organization formed to help regional states speed up integration in an earlier interview said the TMEA is committed to growing prosperity through trade in the Eastern Africa region.
TMEA has also partnered with KenTrade in building the capacity of a number of partner government agencies and integration of their systems with the Single Window System.
The main objective of the IMO’s Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (FAL Convention), adopted in 1965, is to achieve the most efficient maritime transport as possible, looking for smooth transit in ports of ships, cargo and passengers.
The FAL Convention, which has 121 Contracting Governments, contains standards and recommended practices and rules for simplifying formalities, documentary requirements and procedures on ships’ arrival, stay and departure.
Under the FAL Committee, IMO has developed standardised FAL documentation for authorities and Governments to use, and the FAL Convention urges all stakeholders to make use of them.
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