The experienced regulator and current Busan Port Authority president won a vote today among the 40 member nations of the IMO’s governing Council held at its London headquarters.
Lim will succeed Koji Sekimizu as Secretary-General of the United Nations agency after the Japanese diplomat decided to step down at the end of his first four-year term to help care for his wife who has been seriously ill.
The Korean was regarded as one of the front-runners in the election, which was seen as one of the most open ever. However, today’s final debate and voting took place behind closed doors.
Lim campaigned on a platform of ‘a voyage together’, pledging assistance to weaker states to enable adequate implementation and policing of IMO rules.
In a speech to today’s Council he said: “I believe IMO’s core goal of safe, secure and efficient shipping on clean oceans can only be achieved when all member states join together to implement IMO standards properly.
“I want to promote a united IMO where all member states including every stakeholder in the maritime community work hand-in-hand to create a sustainable and effective organization.”
Of the six candidates, Russia’s Vitaly Klyuev, Kenya’s Juvenal Shiundu, Max Meija from the Philippines were eliminated in the early rounds.
After the elimination of Andreas Chrysostomou of Cyprus, it was a head-to-head vote between Lim and Denmark’s Andreas Nordseth.
Lim, who has a 38-year career in shipping, intends to focus on implementation of existing rules and driving greater efficiency. He has also pledged to raise the profile of IMO and shipping around the world.
Today’s vote will be rubber-stamped at a plenary Assembly meeting of the IMO’s member nations in late November.
The other five candidates standing were Russia’s Vitaly Klyuev, Andreas Chrysostomou from Cyprus, Kenya’s Juvenal Shiundu, Max Meija from the Philippines and Denmark’s Andreas Nordseth.
