Global Maritime Regulatory System

Merchant shipping is one of the most heavily regulated industries and was among the first to adopt widely implemented international safety standards.

Regulations concerning shipping are developed at the global level. Because shipping is inherently international, it is vital that shipping is subject to uniform regulations on matters such as construction standards, navigational rules and standards of crew competence. The alternative would be a plethora of conflicting national regulations resulting in commercial distortion and administrative confusion which would compromise the efficiency of world trade.

The shipping industry is principally regulated by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which is the London based United Nations agency responsible for the safety of life at sea and the protection of the marine environment. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) is also responsible for the development of labour standards applicable to seafarers worldwide.

To set and promote the highest standards of health, safety and environment protection IMO adopted four pillars in its structure.

• SOLAS (Safety of life at sea)
• STCW ( Standards of training, certification, and watchkeeping)
• MARPOL (Marine pollution)
• MLC (Maritime labor convention

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1.SOLAS

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The SOLAS Convention in its successive forms is generally regarded as the most important of all international treaties concerning the safety of merchant ships. The first version was adopted in 1914, in response to the Titanic disaster, the second in 1929, the third in 1948, and the fourth in 1960. The 1974 version includes the tacit acceptance procedure - which provides that an amendment shall enter into force on a specified date unless, before that date, objections to the amendment are received from an agreed number of Parties.

2.MARPOL

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MARPOL is the main international convention aimed at the prevention of pollution from ships caused by operational or accidental causes. It was adopted at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in 1973. The Protocol of 1978 was adopted in response to a number of tanker accidents in 1976–1977. The 1978 Protocol was absorbed into the parent Convention and the combined instrument entered into force in 1983. In 1997, a Protocol was adopted to amend the Convention and a new Annex VI was added, which came into force in May 2005. The technical requirements of MARPOL are included in six separate Annexes:

• Annex I—Regulations for the Prevention of Pollution by Oil
• Annex II—Regulations for the Control of Pollution by Noxious Liquid Substances in Bulk
• Annex III—Prevention of Pollution by Harmful Substances Carried in Sea in Packaged Form
• Annex IV—Prevention of Pollution by Sewage from Ships
• Annex V—Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships
• Annex VI—Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships

3.STCW

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International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978 was adopted on 7 July 1978 and entered into force on 28 April 1984. The main purpose of the Convention is to promote safety of life and property at sea and the protection of the marine environment by establishing in common agreement international standards of training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers.

4.MLC

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The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC) is an international agreement of the International Labour Organisation (‘ILO’) which sets out seafarers’ rights to decent conditions of work.  It is sometimes called the ‘Seafarers’ Bill of Rights’.  It applies to all seafarers, including those with jobs in hotel and other passenger services on cruise ships and commercial yachts.In 2013 the MLC became binding law for 30 countries.