The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has announced its 2020 World Maritime Theme will be ‘Sustainable shipping for a sustainable planet’.
The 2020 World Maritime Theme, endorsed at the IMO Council meeting this week, will see IMO members and affiliates work towards implementing the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030; which include the elimination of poverty, sustainable economic growth and taking urgent and immediate action to address climate change. The IMO has detailed the ways in which it is working towards each of the 17 SDGs, including:
- Achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls – the IMO actively encourages its Member States to facilitate women’s access to training and career development in the maritime sector, in order to redress the current gender imbalance;
- Ensuring worldwide access to affordable, sustainable energy – the IMO supports research into renewable and sustainable energy sources and promotes investment in maritime energy efficiency, particularly in developing countries; and
- Conserving marine resources and ecosystems – the IMO’s conventions and regulations are increasingly geared towards promoting sustainability, reducing marine pollution and protecting ocean biodiversity.
IMO Secretary General Kitack Lim said: “I believe that this theme will provide flexibility to the Secretariat and the Member States in highlighting the myriad topics and challenges in meeting the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. At the same time, it will provide excellent opportunities to highlight the already significant contributions of shipping and the IMO to building that sustainable future. The year 2020 will mark the beginning of a decade of action and delivery. It will be a decisive decade not only for the shipping industry, but for life on the planet. We are strategically equipped, in line with the approach laid out in the IMO Secretariat’s SDGs Strategy, to showcase our contribution to the SDGs and to act upon untapped opportunities of technologies, finance and new partnerships for the future benefit of the shipping industry and humankind.”
