Formulation of the National Maritime Transport Policy is at advanced stages, Maritime Principal Secretary Nancy Karigithu said yesterday.
The Ministry of Transport, through Maritime Department, has organised a four-day workshop for local and international experts to formulate this policy.The PS said the four-day workshop
is getting technical assistance from the International Maritime Organisation in formulation of this policy.
The workshop will focus on the process and content to be taken into account when developing and formulating NMTP, according to Karigithu.
“The main objective is to raise awareness on the importance of a NMTP as a good tool for governance and planning in various government ministries or agencies and other stakeholders, while engaging them in a meaningful dialogue with a view to laying the basis for the integration of maritime policies into the national development planning process,” she said.
She said the workshop is imperative given the wide array and the broad complex nature of activities impacting on and surrounding the maritime industry.
The maritime sector has numerous players that are responsible for different aspects of operations, management, and policy formulation.
It comprises of over 13 sectors, 15 sub-sectors and about 87 different activities that are all generally interconnected, and a decision in one of the maritime related activity may adversely affect the performance of another sector.
She said whether the issue is shipping and ports, maritime education and training, off-shore mineral extraction, fishing or tourism, a decision in one area can affect all the others.
“This calls for a coordinated, sustained effort in order to exploit the inter-connection of industries and human activities centred on the maritime domain, the need for development of a National Maritime Transport Policy, which then forms part of a wider Integrated National Maritime Policy (INMP),” she said.
Maritime transport plays a significant role in the social and economic development of Kenya.
Data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade indicates that over 95 per cent of Kenya’s international trade is by sea.