CETMO
February 2008
CETMO Participates in the Meeting of the Working Group on Maritime Safety
On 7 February 2008, CETMO attended the meeting of the Euro-Mediterranean Transport Forum Working Group on Maritime Safety. Also present at the meeting were representatives of Mediterranean countries, some European Union member states and such international organizations as the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC).
The main purpose of the meeting was to evaluate the progress of the SAFEMED project and the latest developments in Euro-Mediterranean cooperation in terms of maritime safety.
In 2007, the SAFEMED project focused its activities on training, analysis of maritime flows in order to evaluate risk, and the implementation of the MARPOL Convention. In 2008, its last year, the SAFEMED programme includes its Voluntary IMO Member State Audit Scheme and an assessment of countries’ implementation of the IMDG and ISM codes.
The European Commission informed participants that the SAFEMED project would continue in the form of SAFEMED II, a 3-year regional MEDA project financed by the EU. The project will focus on the Vessel Tracking Monitoring System (VTMS), port control and safety and security in port areas, and will continue to take action in terms of instruments of compulsory compliance for national fleets and the protection of the marine environment.
The conclusions of the Working Group meeting can be downloaded through this link.
