IMO, others urge support for women in maritime

As Nigeria joins the global community to mark the International Day for Women in Maritime tomorrow, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has called on member states to ensure the inclusion of women in the transition journey to a decarbonised, digitalised and more sustainable future for the industry.

The IMO International Day for Women in Maritime is observed on May 18 every year, with this year’s theme, ‘Mobilising Networks for Gender Equality’.

The day celebrates women in the industry and promotes their recruitment, retention and sustained employment as well as raises their profile and strengthens IMO’s commitment to helping its member states achieve the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goal 5 (gender equality) and support work to address the current gender imbalance in maritime.

A new qualitative study from the Global Maritime Forum and the All Aboard Alliance, estimated the number of women working at sea to be less than two per cent of the total seafarer population. Also, the BIMCO/ICS 2021 Seafarer Workforce Report states that women represent a miserly 1.2 per cent of the global seafarers’ workforce, despite the shortfall and high demand globally.

According to the reports, women face several problems working at sea, including, ill-fitting safety gear, slower career progression, harassment, difficulty in succeeding professionally at sea, challenging social relations onboard, employment challenges at sea and physical conditions onboard. Others include bullying, feelings of isolation and long contracts keeping seafarers from their families for many months, which are also considered as pain points for many male colleagues.

IMO Secretary-General, Kitack Lim, acknowledged women’s role in all facets of the maritime sector across the globe, including onshore and at sea to support the transition to a more sustainable future for the industry. He said many women are contributing to the future of maritime through their various roles, which include, navigators, engineers, surveyors, chief executive officers, managers, representatives of government and industry, as well as those chairing IMO meetings among other roles across the industry.

Lim said, unfortunately, there is still a significant gender imbalance in the sector, noting that while times are changing, the maritime community needs to accelerate that change, as the benefits for the whole sector of improved diversity in the workforce are evident.

According to him, the theme for this year highlights the importance of collaboration and networking in achieving gender equality in the sector. He said the networks are paving the way in supporting women in maritime across the globe and encouraging the next generation into the industry.

Head of Shipping at South32 and Co-Chair of the All Aboard Alliance, Su Yin Anand, said life at sea should be made more inclusive to women seafarers, saying, “ We do not want them to leave their careers at sea because we need them and many more.”

An ex-cadet of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron, Akwa Ibom State, Obiji Ebenezer, said some organisations lack confidence in the capacity of female maritime workers, thereby rejecting them over the fear of inability to compete like their male counterparts.

“Women are very emotional and being away from home for months on a sea-going vessel can be very hard for them. Basic provisions for women at sea are not usually taken into consideration. Some end up wearing male outfits to work and most times they are oversized and not comfortable to work in,” he said.

Another MAN ex-cadet, Ikheloa Lazarus, who spoke on the challenges faced by women cadets at school, said women are not physically strong enough to engage in tough activities like their male counterparts. He said most maritime institutions are male-dominated, which affects the ladies psychologically as they see it as gender pressure. He said institutions should provide a level playing ground for everyone.

“Women should not be allowed to engage in rigorous regimental activities like their male counterparts, ensuring adequate medical care and counseling are mandatory for women in all maritime institutions during their monthly period. The number of females admitted into institutions should be the same as males. It will boost their confidence,” he said.

Project Director, Human Sustainability at Global Maritime Forum and author of the report, Dr. Susanne Justesen, said there is a need to develop adequate measures to find solutions to each of these challenges faced by women in the sector. She said the industry needs women seafarers, adding that it is important stakeholders work collectively to develop and test ways to make work life onboard more inclusive for everyone.

Chief Executive Officer, Tanker Operator Hafnia, Mikael Skov, said the industry is changing rapidly and needs more advanced skills, which will require holistically looking at the full talent pipeline to identify the best candidates for the maritime sector to thrive and grow.