Diversity and also maritime safety and security remained in emphasis at the inaugural occasion for the Women in Maritime of West and also Central Africa (WIMOWCA). Women in maritime took centre phase at the launch of the Women in Maritime of West and also Central Africa (WIMOWCA), the most recent IMO-supported local organization for females in the maritime industry (WIMA).

“The objective of WIMOWCA is to harness the potential and contribution of women in West and Central Africa to ensure the sustainable development of the maritime industry in Africa,” claimed WIMOWCA Interim President, Sylvia Asana Dauda Owu.

“Women, as you are all aware, form over 51% of the world population and the same is true for Africa, as such they cannot be left out in any global effort to confront the challenges we face today in the global maritime industry. Sustainable maritime development would require inclusive participation of all, men and women, if we are to succeed in our endeavor in that regard,” she claimed.

Image Credits: IMO

The crossbreed occasion was held (23 July) at MT Addico Conference Hall in Accra, Ghana and also livestreamed to a worldwide target market.

“For sustainability and success in the modern world, shipping needs diversity in the workforce and we need women to drive the decision-making processes,” IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim claimed in his keynote speech. “We are on the right path and progress has been made. However much still needs to be done to help the maritime industry progress toward gender equality. WIMOWCA is a welcome addition to the global network of WIMAs. This special event provides a unique opportunity to discuss and celebrate two topics: women in the maritime community, and Africa as a maritime continent.”

Seven various other WIMAs have actually currently been developed throughout Africa, Arab States, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America and also the Pacific, sustained by IMO’s long-running Women in Maritime sex program. Between them, the WIMAs count greater than 700 individuals from throughout 152 nations. Individuals signing up with the most recent WIMA, which will certainly concentrate on Anglophone West and also Central Africa, will certainly have accessibility to comparable collective and also networking chances and also accessibility to IMO‑sponsored training via the WIMAs. Network of Professional Women in the Maritime and also Port Sectors for West and also Central Africa (NPWMP-WCA), which was introduced in February 2007 in Benin concentrates on Francophone West and alsoCentral Africa Click below for the overall checklist of WIMAs on the IMO’s Women in Maritime web page.

Ghana’s Minister of Transport, theHon Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, highlighted in his speech the duty that females would certainly play in the“African perspective of the Blue Economy” “The blue economy has quite rightly been described as the ‘New Frontier of the African Renaissance’. Our continent is indeed a big island, with 38 coastal countries. Over 90% of Africa’s International trade, imports and exports are conducted by sea. The potential runs into many trillions of dollars and promises to combine enormous economic growth for our respective countries. Inclusive development is one of the surest ways and sustainable means to harness the full potential of Africa’s blue economy. Women must be at the heart of this agenda,” he claimed.

Image Credits: IMO

The inaugural WOMOWCA occasion likewise included a panel conversation on “The impact of maritime insecurity on shipping in the Gulf of Guinea, challenges and the way forward”, which supplied a local viewpoint on the circumstance.

Additional discussions from growth companions discussed the job of the U S Naval Forces Europe and also Africa Women’s, Peace, and also Security Working Group in West and also Central Africa, the IMOGEN IMO Member States delegates’ sex campaign and also the value of galvanizing females in the maritime market. For the complete program, see the occasion web page below.

IMO’s Women in Maritime program has actually been competing greater than three decades, sustaining females in both shore-based and also sea-going functions. (Read much more below: https://www.imo.org/en/Our Work/TechnicalCooperation/Pages/WomenInMaritime aspx

Women in Maritime– IMO and also WISTA International Survey 2021

IMO and also WISTA International have actually introduced the Women in Maritime– IMO and also WISTA International Survey 2021 to check out the percentage and also circulation of females operating in the maritime industry, from assistance functions to executive degree settings. Member States and also companies/NGOS are welcomed to fill out the study to supply important standard information.

Reference: IMO