The UAE has collaborated with the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) in order to extend its support to the seafarers.
According to the statement, the alliance will help to improve seafarers’ life as well as overcome the challenges they face as a result of the pandemic and travel restrictions. The ITF is an international federation of transport workers’ trade unions.
“The UAE is a logistics hub linking global shipping lines and has the major share of the ships that call on the region’s ports, with more than 21,000 ships every year,” as per the statement. Over 20,000 local and international maritime companies operate in the Emirates with over 17 million containers handled in the UAE ports annually.
Mohammed Khamis Al Kaabi UAE Permanent Representative IMO
“We are confident that our initiatives will have a global impact as thousands of seafarers who come to the UAE will benefit from it. The UAE will be the international benchmark for ensuring the welfare of seafarers and their rights. Ships that violate the rights of seafarers will not be able to enter the UAE waters, and therefore will not be part of the regional trade center and the global supply chain and logistics services.”
HE Hessa Al Malek, Advisor to the Minister for Maritime Transport Affairs, UAE Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure said, “Seafarers are the lifeline of our industry. They are the one the frontlines, facing every calamity and natural disaster and connecting the world via sea routes.”
“The country was one of the first IMO Member States to designate seafarers as key workers during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic and supported them by facilitating safe ship crew change, repatriation of workers, administering vaccinations, and providing them access to medical care,” Ms. Al Malek added.
Earlier this year, the UAE launched the ‘Supporting our Blue Army’ initiative to improve the living standards of the seafarers. The initiative protects seafarers’ rights with ship owners and operating firms, as well as helps them to overcome the challenges related to pandemic and so on.
