The Egyptian Ministry of Transport announced in a statement today the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Arab Republic of Egypt and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) at the IMO headquarters in London. The purpose of this MOU is to establish a regional office of the IMO in Egypt, located within the premises of the Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety.
Signing on behalf of the Minister of Transport, Admiral Hussein Al-Jaziri, President of the Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety, and the Head of the Technical Cooperation Sector of the Organization on behalf of the Secretary-General, were present.
The signing ceremony was attended by Ambassador Sherif Kamel, Egypt’s Ambassador in London, Admiral Reda Ahmed Ismail, Head of the Maritime Transport Sector, and Kitack Lim, Secretary-General of the Organization.
The office’s role will involve coordinating with the IMO to establish technical cooperation activities for Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa region. This will result in enhancing the capabilities of maritime human resources in the region and building effective cadres capable of implementing the IMO’s instruments.
Egypt had applied for the establishment of the office in 2019. After extensive efforts, close cooperation, and effective coordination among all state apparatus, notably the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Egyptian Embassy in London, the approval was granted in 2022 during the 72nd session of the Technical Cooperation Committee, and the decision was adopted by the organization’s council at its 128th session.
The International Maritime Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations established in 1958. Its headquarters is located in London, United Kingdom, and it has five regional offices in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, the Philippines, and Trinidad and Tobago. The organization comprises 175 member states, in addition to three associate members and over 145 observer organizations.
