The world’s largest seafarers’ union and shipping industry employers’ association are jointly contributing to a Singapore fund established to help seafarers caught up in the crew change crisis to get home.
The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) and the International Maritime Employers’ Council (IMEC) have jointly contributed $500,000 to the Singapore Shipping Tripartite Alliance Resilience (SG-STAR) Fund.
Together with contributions from the Singapore Shipping Association, the Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union and the Singapore Organisation of Seamen the fund now totals $1.2m.
The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) is also offering support to the scheme.
The SG-STAR Fund was established to assist countries in adopting best practices for crew change.
ITF general secretary Steve Cotton said he is hoping for practical solutions to the crew change crisis.
“We need to see progress especially on ways seafarers can show authorities and employers their negative Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test results from verified medical institutions, so that quarantine times can be reduced onboard and while waiting to join vessels,” Cotton said.
The SG-STAR Fund also aims support labour supply nations to establish safe “bubbles” or “corridors” to enable crew change at the seafarer’s home country or the country where the crew joins the ship.
International Maritime Organization secretary general Kitak Lim said: “This is a commendable global initiative bringing together the collective efforts of governments, the shipping industry and maritime unions to take concrete steps to address the urgent issue of crew change.”
In a separate development related to the crew change problem the IMO is to hold an extraordinary session of the Maritime Safety Committee meeting on 21 September for governments to attempt to find a solution.
On 24 September. it will hold a high-level side event on the impact of Covid-19 on maritime crew changes from the humanitarian, safety and economic perspective.
