Marking a milestone achievement in the UAE maritime industry, today (Tuesday 24th September) saw the UAE Shipping Association (UAESA) becoming a full member of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS). 

The signing, which took place on Day 2 of Seatrade Shiptech at the Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, UAE, will provide a framework for closer collaboration between the two associations. The event is a part of the UAE Maritime Week taking place under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai.

The MOU outlines the roles that UAESA and ICS will have to represent shipowners and operators in all shipping sectors and trades across the global and regional organisations, regulators and other bodies which impact and affect the interests of international shipping.

ICS Chairman, Mr Esben Poulsson said: “The UAE has a proud history of looking to the sea for its future. From the early 1900s when Dubai was declared a free port to today when the UAE places seaport infrastructure quality at the heart of Vision 2021. It is therefore only natural that as the representatives of the world’s national shipowner associations we should want to further cement our relationships to ensure that we work as effectively as possible in support of a global regulatory framework for shipping.

Mr Poulsson added: “The UAE has been leading the way when it comes to the energy transition. As the ICS looks to shape the future of shipping we can only benefit from the experience and leadership that the UAE is providing at this time of transformation for the maritime sector.”

Representing UAESA, the Chairman Capt. Abdulkareem Al Mesabi, said: “As chairman of the UAE Shipping association I have the pleasure to announce that today we will be officially joining the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) as its most recent full member. 

“The ICS has a large number of full and associated members and thus a near worldwide network. When I say “nearly” I mean that so far the Middle East has not been represented and I am happy to close this gap and to offer UAE based shipowners a platform to voice their concerns and opinions and to be heard!”

Capt. Al Mesabi added: “UAESA was launched in 2005 and formally established in 2007. The vision of the association is to promote and protect the interests of ship owners and the shipping community of the UAE, whilst additionally providing a shared platform for interaction within the remaining maritime industry. 

We have till date a total of 32 members and our objective is to be a central communication point between the industry and the authorities.  As UAE continues to strengthen its position as one of the world’s leading global maritime clusters, our vision is to add more value towards this growth. By joining the ICS we will be able to focus on representing regional entities on international platforms to gain more global recognition.  

The ICS is directly working with the IMO, therefore we are in an effective position with both the UAE government as well as the IMO as a global body.  It will also strengthen the position the membership position of the UAE with the IMO.

“The benefits towards the UAE as a maritime hub will not only aid in the exploration and options that are available to us already, but create and develop practices and guidance’s with the extensive help of knowledge possessed by the ICS in order to support our own shipowners and operators in all sectors and trades.”