More than 30 GCC maritime professionals attended a two-day regional executive seminar held by Bahrain's General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) on January 30 and 31.

The seminar entitled “Safety of Navigation and the Obligations of a Competent Authority with respect to Aids to Navigation” was held under the patronage of Shaikh Daij bin Salman Al Khalifa, chairman of GOP, in collaboration with the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA) and Middle East Navigation Aids Services (Menas). 

The sessions were led by international experts, rear admiral Jean-Charles Leclair, consultant for International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and dean of the IALA World-Wide Academy; and Omar Frits Eriksson, manager maritime technology at the Danish Maritime Authority (DMA) and chair of the IALA Engineering Committee. 

Hassan Al Majed, director general of GOP, said: “As the regulatory authority for maritime affairs in Bahrain, the GOP is committed to adhere to best international practices and standards for promoting maritime safety. Holding such a regional seminar reinforces GOP’s efforts to continuously improve the overall safety standards on vessels, employ the latest cutting edge technology and provide adequate training to our personnel in order to achieve safe, secure and efficient shipping in maritime jurisdictions in the Gulf region.” 

Several aspects related to increasing safety of life and property at sea and the latest aids to navigation, with special focus on e-Navigation, an innovative concept which was developed by IMO and is being implemented this year to bring about increased safety and security in commercial shipping.

Some of the topics on maritime safety included AIS which helps in efficient navigation of ships, real time shipping movements and port arrivals data, vessel traffic services (VTS) operation for marine traffic monitoring, routeing measures, pilotage to provide safe, reliable and efficient services wherever navigation is considered hazardous, management and maintenance of vessels, and protection of the environment.

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. 

Bahrain is the first Arab country in the region to fully implement the long range identification and tracking of ships (LRIT) system. 

The GOP has signed a number of agreements with Bahrain- Solas - International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, Marpol International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships, STCW- International Convention on Standards of Training, and Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers- to adopt international regulatory standards for safety, marine environment and others. – TradeArabia News Service