World Maritime Day (WMD)

Jamaica joins the rest of the world in observing the 10^th anniversary of the Day of the Seafarer, which is observed globally on June 25.

Speaking at a JIS ‘Think Tank’, on Thursday, June 24, Dean of the Faculty of Marine and Nautical Studies at the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU), Captain Devron Newman, explained that a number of activities will be held to mark the occasion.

Captain Newman, who is Chairman of the Day of the Seafarer Planning Committee said that a virtual panel discussion will be held on June 25 under the theme ‘Partnership and Collaboration, the Future of Seafaring’.

Jamaica proudly joins the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and its Member States in observing the Day of the Seafarer, celebrated this year under the theme, “Fair Future for Seafarers”.

Today as we mark the annual international Day of the Seafarer, our world is a very different place. Ravaged by the Covid-19 pandemic, all of us have experienced difficulties, hardships and losses. As a global community we have joined forces and supported each other to overcome this monumental threat.

The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has brought acute focus to the maritime industry, and the individuals and entities that operate within it. It is a shame that it took a global health crisis to begin global discussions about the vital importance of our seafarers.

Merchant seafarers have chosen a dangerous occupation in which they are exposed to risks in a combination rarely encountered in other occupations.

• Detlef Nielsen, “Deaths at sea - a study of fatalities on board Hong Kong-registered merchant ships (1986–95)”