Maritime
Supporting free-flowing maritime
traffic in South-East Asia
T
he key IMO treaty supporting the free flow of
international maritime traffic – the Facilitation
Convention – is the subject of a regional seminar in
Bangkok, Thailand (22-26 May).
The so-called “FAL Convention” provides a set
of consistent, uniform regulations that cover the
wide range of administrative tasks required of ships
coming into and leaving port. These include customs
declarations, immigrations clearance, import and
export permits and many others. Implementing these regulations
can both help reduce transport costs and contribute to sustainable
development.
The Bangkok seminar involves 53 participants from 11 countries*
18
across Southeast Asia involved in the clearance of ships, cargo, crew
and passengers at ports. The aim is to support a more effective
implementation of the Convention as a whole, as well as the maritime
“single window” concept on data exchange. The single window,
encouraged under FAL, focuses on the many agencies and authorities
involved exchange data via a single point of contact.
IMO is represented by Julian Abril and Cagri Kucukyildiz. Reference:
imo.org
* Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste
and Vietnam