SMSA and MTCC Africa regional workshop Climate change mitigation in shipping and maritime industry under microscope |02 November 2019
A three-day regional workshop on capacity building for climate change mitigation in the shipping and maritime industry took place this week at the AVANI Seychelles Barbarons Resort & Spa.
The workshop forms part of the capacity building initiative of the Global Maritime Network (GMN), established by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) through the European Union, towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime and shipping industry through capacity building on emerging technologies in energy efficiency and increased uptake of low-carbon technologies.
It was opened by the principal secretary for civil aviation, ports and marine Alan Renaud on Tuesday and ended on Thursday October 31.
The second such regional workshop was realised through the Maritime Technology Cooperation Centre (MTCC) - Africa,hosted by the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), Mombasa CBD Campus, in partnership with Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) and Kenya Ports Authority (KPA), and the Seychelles through the Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine, represented by the Seychelles Maritime Safety Administration (SMSA).
During his opening address, PS Renaud noted that Greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime shipping industry are expected to continue to increase globally emphasising the need for collaboration to reduce such emissions and reaffirming Seychelles’ commitment towards the target.
“If we want shipping to increase, but emissions to peak at the same time, then ships must become much, much more efficient than they are today, they can do this by getting bigger, or having new propulsion technologies that don’t rely so much on fossil fuels or a combination of the above. Ports have to get bigger to accommodate these larger more efficient ships, and the ports themselves have to be more efficient so ships aren’t left idle. It will require innovation, new ways of thinking, new technologies. It’s a challenge the shipping industry has accepted and I tell you now, the great people of Seychelles, mean not only to be a part of this enterprise – we intend to lead it, if we can,” PS Renaud stated.
Over the course of the past couple of days, delegates attending the workshop have had the opportunity to learn about pilot projects towards greener ports within the region, capacity building initiatives among others. They also took part in panel discussions on nationally determined contributions (NDCs) on climate finance insights or green growth in the maritime shipping industry. One the sessions focused on monitoring and evaluation of the MTCC Africa pilot projects in Africa for future green ports for improved coordination, networking and capacity building followed by further discussion about maritime security and other pertinent issues.
During Thursday’s half-day session, delegates took part in discussions on the outcomes of the workshop as well as set goals ahead of future meetings. They were also awarded certificates during a brief closing ceremony.
On April 13, 2018, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) agreed to a comprehensive strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from international shipping, consistent with the Paris Agreement on temperature goals, with aims to phase them out as soon as possible in this century.
The strategy is a major milestone for the shipping industry, which is now the first global sector to have set an absolute emissions reduction target.
Laura Pillay