International Maritime Organization

The International Maritime Organization (IMO), formerly known as the Inter-

Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO), was established in

Geneva in 1948, and came into force ten years later, meeting for the first time in 1959.

The IMCO name was changed to IMO in 1982.

Headquartered in London, United Kingdom, the IMO is a specialized agency of the

United Nations with 168 Member States and three Associate Members.

History

IMCO was formed to fulfill a desire to bring the regulation of the safety of shipping into

an international framework, for which the creation of the United Nations provided an

opportunity. Hitherto such international conventions had been initiated piecemeal,

notably the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS), first adopted in 1914 following

the Titanic disaster. IMCO's first task was to update that Convention; the resulting 1960

Convention was subsequently recast and updated in 1974 and it is that Convention that

has been subsequently modified and updated to adapt to changes in safety requirements

and technology.

When IMCO began its operations in 1958 certain other pre-existing instruments were
brought under its aegis, most notable the International Convention for the Prevention of

Pollution of the Sea by Oil (OILPOL) 1954. Throughout its existence IMCO, renamed

the IMO in 1982, has continued to produce new and updated instruments across a wide

range of maritime issues covering not only safety of life and marine pollution but also

encompassing safe navigation, search and rescue, wreck removal, tonnage measurement,

liability and compensation, ship recycling, the training and certification of seafarers, and

piracy. More recently SOLAS has been amended to bring an increased focus on maritime

security through the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS) and the

IMO has increased its focus on air emissions from ships.

IMO is the source of approximately 60 legal instruments that guide the regulatory

development of its member states to improve safety at sea, facilitate trade among

seafaring states and protect the maritime environment. The most well known is the

International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS).

IMO regularly enacts regulations, which are broadly enforced by national and local

maritime authorities in member countries, such as the International Regulations for

Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREG). The IMO has also enacted a Port State Control

(PSC) authority, allowing domestic maritime authorities such as coast guards to inspect

foreign-flag ships calling at ports of the many port states. Memoranda of Understanding
(protocols) were signed by some countries unifying Port State Control procedures among

the signatories.

Purpose and Frameworks

The IMO's primary purpose is to develop and maintain a comprehensive regulatory

framework for shipping and its remit today includes safety, environmental concerns, legal

matters, technical co-operation, maritime security and the efficiency of shipping. IMO is

governed by an Assembly of members and is financially administered by a Council of

members elected from the Assembly. The work of IMO is conducted through five

committees and these are supported by technical subcommittees. Member organizations

of the UN organizational family may observe the proceedings of the IMO. Observer

status is granted to qualified non-governmental organizations.

The IMO is supported by a permanent secretariat of employees who are representative of

its members. The secretariat is composed of a Secretary-General who is periodically

elected by the Assembly, and various divisions such as those for marine safety,

environmental protection, and a conference section.

Current issues

Recent initiatives at the IMO have included amendments to SOLAS, which upgraded fire

protection standards on passenger ships, the International Convention on Standards of

Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) which establishes basic
requirements on training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers and to the

Convention on the Prevention of Maritime Pollution (MARPOL 73/78), which required

double hulls on all tankers.

In December 2002, new amendments to the 1974 SOLAS Convention were enacted.

These amendments gave rise to the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS)

Code, which went into effect on 1 July 2004. The concept of the code is to provide

layered and redundant defenses against smuggling, terrorism, piracy, stowaways, etc. The

ISPS Code required most ships and port facilities engaged in international trade to

establish and maintain strict security procedures as specified in ship and port specific

Ship Security Plans and Port Facility Security Plans.

The IMO is also responsible for publishing the International Code of Signals for use

between merchant and naval vessels.

The First Intersessional Meeting of IMO’s Working Group on Greenhouse Gas

Emissions from Ships took place in Oslo, Norway (23-27 June, 2008), tasked with

developing the technical basis for the reduction mechanisms that may form part of a

future IMO regime to control greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping, and

a draft of the actual reduction mechanisms themselves, for further consideration by

IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC).

The IMO has also served as a key partner and enabler of U.S. international and

interagency efforts to establish Maritime Domain Awareness.