Statement presented by Mr Louis Moses Mendy Permanent Secretary Ministry of Works, Transport and Infrastructure. In attendance was H.E Dr Fatou Bensouda, High Commissioner of Gambia in London, with her DHM Suntou Touray, Mr Karamo B Janneh, Director General, GMA, MD Gambia Ports Authority, Habour Master, as well Legal and technical team.
Madam First Vice President, the Secretary General, Your Excellencies, Distinguished delegates, on behalf of the President of the Republic of The Gambia and The Gambia delegation, I bring you warm greetings from the smiling coast of Africa.
First and foremost, I would like to thank the outgoing Secretary General for his exemplary leadership during the last eight years, and also congratulate the Secretary General elect and wishing him a successful tenure.
Madam 1st Vice President it is our pleasure to be part of this august gathering of the highest organ of the global standards setting Organization. I take this opportunity as the representative of the Minister responsible for Maritime Transport to thank the Organization under the excellent leadership of the Secretary General for the milestones registered in recent years especially the use of innovative technologies during the Covid-19 pandemic that ensure that member states continue to deliberate on important issues affecting the maritime industry.
Madam 1st Vice President, The Gambia recognizes the effort of the Organization in making shipping safer, more efficient, and environmentally sound and sustainable through cooperation whilst remaining as the most responsive and preferred option for mass transit of cargo. It can be conveniently stated that the maritime industry offers more opportunities globally than any other sector. These opportunities can be leveraged optimally through cooperation to make the world wealthier for the betterment of its citizens’ livelihoods.
These opportunities Madam 1st Vice President, could be better explored through participatory and cooperative frameworks and therefore I urge this august body to continue playing the crucial role of providing comprehensive regulatory frameworks to guide and create a level playing field where least developed countries and Small Island Developing States will have a fair share of what the maritime industry offers.
Madam 1st Vice President, The Gambia is aware of the efforts this august body is making through its ambitious Green House Gas (GHG) strategies for the maritime sector as part of the global efforts to combat global warming. Whilst significant achievements have been recorded and new GHG strategies being adopted, there should be no room for complacency until the Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing Member States of IMO are assisted to cope with the impact of this phenomenon. Capacity building, training, adoption of green technologies and technical assistance to implement national plans of action are some of the critical support elements necessary for the realisation of this objective.
The Gambia is also aware of the efforts IMO is making in the fight against Sea-Based Marine Plastic Litter in collaboration with other UN bodies such as FAO. One such efforts is the just-ended Glolitter Africa Regional Taskforce Meeting in Nairobi which demonstrates IMO’s holistic approach in the fight against marine environmental pollution.
To that end Madam 1st Vice President, The Gambia wants to commend the IMO for its Global Partnership initiatives, particularly, the holding of the first in-person knowledge partnership workshop in Accra which was indeed timely and crucial to rendering the much-needed assistance and support to Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States through donor-sponsored projects. This is a trusted and reliable trajectory that has a potential to bring donors and recipients face to face in engagements whilst IMO provides the needed technical guidance.
The Gambia, Madam 1st Vice President is a unique maritime member state of IMO, as it is one of the countries if not the only country that is divided in to two halves by its river which is navigable for over 477km from the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to her being a coastal, port and flag State, The Gambia has a huge opportunity to explore its maritime transport services. For this reason, The Gambia is committed to supporting the efforts of IMO and as such, ratified and domesticated key IMO Conventions. The State has also undergone IMSAS audit and is now working with the Organisation for guidance on the correction of the findings. We are encouraged by the support we received from IMO so far through its regional presence office and partners. We have developed a maritime transport policy and maritime sector strategy to inform and guide future developmental needs of the maritime sector of the country. The Gambia is therefore interested in developing further collaboration and partnership with IMO and member states to achieve this objective.
To conclude, Madam 1st Vice President, IMO is an important global institution that is established to serve the interest of international shipping as enshrined in the IMO Convention. I therefore urge member states to jealously guard the spirit and intentions demonstrated in the convention that establishes this specialised agency of the United Nations against any pollicisation tendencies with the potential of eroding the trust and confidence built amongst member States and above all, discredit the technical reputation that this Organisation is known for.
I thank you Madam 1st Vice President, Secretary General Your Excellencies and distinguished delegates for your attention.
