Director General of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO) for Maritime Affairs Mehdi Farahani attended the 26th annual meeting of the Indian Ocean Memorandum of Understanding (IOMOU) on port state control in Mahe, Seychelles.
The Indian Ocean MoU is an inter-governmental organization on port state control (PSC) in the Indian Ocean region, recognized by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), as specialized UN body. Its vision is to eliminate substandard shipping in the Indian Ocean region and maintain inter-regional cooperation and harmonization among other MoUs.
The 26th meeting of the IOMOU on port state control was held with the participation of 20 member states, representatives of Paris MoU, the Tokyo MoU, the Association of Asian Classification Societies, the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), and also virtual presence of the member of the Black Sea Region (BS MoU) and Riyadh MoU.
The Islamic Republic of Iran is one of the most effective and active members of the MoU with preparing technical documents under the management of two correspondence working groups, Farahani said, adding that Iran has also participated in 11 correspondence working groups.
This year, the Islamic Republic of Iran prepared three technical documents including instructions for remote technical and safety inspections, he added.
Also, an analysis of a centralized inspection report on the requirements of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) was reported at the ninth meeting of the Specialized Committee at the headquarters of the International Maritime Organization, he emphasized.
The secretary general of the Indian Ocean MoU thanked Iran as an active member in ship control and inspection, which was able to win the award by members for three consecutive years for reporting the most technical deficiencies, Farahani further explained.
During the first Indian Ocean MoU Committee meeting held in Goa in 1999, countries which signed acceptance of MoU included Australia, Eritrea, India, Sudan, South Africa and Tanzania. Subsequently, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Iran, Kenya, Maldives, Oman, Yemen, France, Bangladesh, Comoros, Mozambique, Seychelles, Myanmar and Madagascar.
The Indian Ocean Memorandum of Understanding (IOMOU) on port State control (PSC) held the first preparatory meeting held in India in October 1997 and the second meeting was held in South Africa in June 1998.
