New York, 19 May 2022 (TDI): Women account for just 20 percent of the workforce in the maritime authorities of the Member States and 29 percent across subsectors in the marine industry.
These statistics were shared by the Chief of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), Kitack Lim, during a virtual symposium on Training-Visibility-Recognition: Supporting a barrier-free working environment for Women in Maritime.
The seminar was organized to celebrate the international day of women in maritime. According to the Chief, women accounted for two percent of the workforce working at sea and emphasized improving working conditions for women in this sector.
“We can – and must – do better” said IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim, “IMO is committed to gender inclusivity.” #WomenInMaritimeDay Join the symposium here: https://t.co/qkCaWAP61I pic.twitter.com/4P3BNvbPPV
— IMO (@IMOHQ) May 18, 2022
Commitment to gender-inclusive workspaces
IMO has been focusing on improving gender inequality in maritime programs and has condensed its efforts for this cause. The International Day for Women in Maritime seminar stressed focusing on areas requiring improvement.
The day intends to celebrate and promote women’s recruitment, retention, and employment in the maritime sector.
According to the official, IMO is currently focusing on its commitment to enhancing women’s profile in the marine sector under SDG 5, i.e., Gender equality.
He underscored the importance of investing in women for lifting communities and countries to better economic opportunities.
While appreciating the growing number of women in the maritime sector as compared to the past, the IMO Chief underscored the significance of collaborations on out of the box solutions to achieve a sustainable, diverse, and more inclusive green future for the women in maritime services thrown up by digitalization and decarbonization.
“People must be empowered to participate in discussions about maritime’s future, irrespective of gender,” said IMO Chief.
Currently, IMO is working to establish eight thriving Women in Maritime Associations (WIMAs), three of which are situated in Africa, and the other five represent Aisa, Arab States, Caribbean, Latin America, and the Pacific region.
IMO is funding opportunities to enhance technician expertise by funding IMO International Maritime Law Institute, the Women in Port Management course, and the Maritime SheEO leadership accelerator program.
“By actively empowering women with the requisite skills, maintaining a barrier-free working environment, we create truly sustainable systems of gender equality.” Remarked, IMO Chief.
