International Maritime Organization (IMO) is continuing its ongoing efforts to ensure women can reach top ranks in the maritime sector, through its Women in Maritime programme.
The latest event was a two-week training course for female officials from maritime and port authorities of developing countries, in Le Havre, France (11-22 June).
At the Institut Portuaire d'Enseignement et de Recherche (IPER), 23 female officials from 14 developing countries (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, the Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Gabon, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Senegal, Seychelles, Togo and Tunisia) had the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of port management and operational efficiency.
They also took part in lectures on a variety of port matters including management, security, marine environment, marketing, tariffs and logistics as well as facilitation of maritime traffic, ship/port interface and concession contracts.
Delivered in French, organized visits to the Port of Le Havre and the Port of Rouen, enabled participants to experience for themselves the day-to-day operations of a port, with a view to applying this knowledge back in their respective countries.
The event was delivered through IMO's gender and capacity-building programme, in collaboration with the Le Havre Port Authority. It comes as part of IMO's continuous efforts to support the UN Sustainable Development Goal 5 to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
Demand for this course has continued to grow substantially over the past three years, however further funding will need to be secured to keep up with the increased demand.