The General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) conducted a two-day regional training workshop for Gulf maritime professionals with focus on the long-range identification and tracking of ships (LRIT) system.

The workshop, attended by professionals from Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, was held at the Gulf Hotel on Tuesday and Wednesday.

It was supported by an expert team from a UK-based company, Pole Star Space Application.

The objective was to provide training and expertise to regional maritime experts on how to utilise the latest advanced technologies to identify and track the location of ships within a radius of 1,000 nautical miles of the country's maritime boundaries.

Additionally, the trainees were educated on how to analyse the information provided by the LRIT system to ultimately help bolster safety, security and maritime search and rescue services for ships in and around Bahrain's maritime boundaries.

'Bahrain was not only the first Arab country to fully implement the LRIT system, we were also among the first in the world,' said GOP director-general Hassan Ali Al Majed.

'This inaugural workshop is part of the GOP's overall strategy to further develop and continue the roll out of the LRIT system to the rest of the region.

'Not only will this benefit Bahrain in the long run, but it will also benefit the regional maritime industry, as well as ultimately helping to establish a co-operative data centre in the region.'

Bahrain is a member of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), and the GOP is committed and dedicated to fully and effectively implementing IMO sanctioned systems and standards to help further develop the global maritime industry.

'At GOP, our efforts are focused on establishing a benchmark for excellence in the maritime industry, this effort is furthered by conducting workshops such as this one, which help to progressively strengthen our maritime capabilities and position Bahrain as a leading player in the maritime industry,' said Al Majed.-TradeArabia News Service