The EBRD and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) agreed in London to deepen their cooperation and establish a strategic partnership to promote sustainable maritime transport, EBRD said in a message Feb. 9.
The cooperation was formalised in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by Phil Bennett, EBRD First Vice President, and Kitack Lim, IMO Secretary-General.
Under the agreement, the EBRD and the IMO will exchange know-how and experience and will work together with national governments, in countries where both institutions are active, to help them implement frameworks for a fair, effective and sustainable maritime industry.
Initially, the cooperation will focus on Azerbaijan, Egypt, Georgia, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey and cover topics such as attracting more investment in the sector, tackling climate change, enhancing energy efficiency and promoting the highest standards of health and safety.
Phil Bennett, EBRD First Vice President, said: ‘Applying its green principles, the EBRD is investing in ports, shipyards and shipping companies to encourage development of the ‘motorways of the sea’, an international vision to transform shipping into an environmentally friendly alternative to land transport. With the IMO’s expertise we want to help the economies where we invest, and the companies we finance, to make maritime transport greener and more sustainable.
Kitack Lim, Secretary General at the IMO commented: ‘This strategic partnership, combining the IMO’s global mandate and outreach and the EBRD’s experience and expertise in investment and finance, is expected to contribute a great deal to sustainable maritime transport and the implementation of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.’
International shipping transports more than 80 percent of global trade to people and communities all over the world. Shipping is the most efficient and cost-effective method of international transport for most goods; it provides a dependable, low-cost means of transporting goods globally, facilitating commerce and helping to create prosperity among nations.
A UN agency with 173 member states and three associate members, the IMO is the global standard-setting authority for the facilitation of maritime traffic, and the security, safety and environmental performance of international shipping.
The EBRD is a multilateral bank, owned by 66 countries as well as the European Union and the European Investment Bank. It promotes the development of the private sector and entrepreneurial initiative in 38 economies, across three continents. The Bank’s investments are aimed at making the economies in its regions competitive, inclusive, well governed, green, resilient and integrated. To date, it has invested €1.2 billion in the maritime sector, including ports, shipyards and shipping firms across 19 countries.
Azerbaijan has been a member of EBRD since 1992. Since then, the bank has invested about $2.8 billion in Azerbaijan’s economy.
