Maritime transport must comply with complex administrative procedures concerning reporting formalities, even when it relates to navigation between EU ports. Reporting formalities means the information which must be provided for administrative and procedural purposes when a ship arrives in and/or departs from a port in a particular EU Member State. These procedures, currently regulated by Directive 2002/6/EC on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and/or departing from ports of the Member States of the Community, result in costs and delays and thus making maritime transport less attractive.
In January 2009, the European Commission published a proposal to amend the above mentioned Directive. After discussions at the EU level, Directive 2010/65/EU on reporting formalities for ships was adopted in October 2010.
This new Directive, which needs to be transposed into Maltese law by May 2012, will have a direct bearing on actual operations related to ships’ arrival and departure at or from our ports. In this context, the Malta Shortsea Promotion Centre (MSPC), together with the Malta-EU Steering and Action Committee (MEUSAC) and the European Commission Representation in Malta, organised a seminar on the new Directive 2010/65/EU. The aim of this seminar was to create awareness within the Maltese shipping community about the implications of this Directive and its salient points.
Speakers at the seminar included officials from the European Commission Directorate General for Mobility and Transport, the Ministry for Infrastructure, Transport and Telecommunications, Transport Malta and the Customs Department.
This very well attended seminar was of particular interest to shipping agencies, ship owners, shippers, ship brokers and agents, the business industry and freight forwarders.
The seminar was held on 23rd May 2011 at Europe House in Valletta.
PRESENTATIONS:
Anthony Busuttil: Role of Information and Communication Technology in Trade Facilitation – Customs’ Perspective
Edmund Darmanin: The implementation of the Directive – the present state of affairs
Jukka Savo: Directive 2010/65/EU - aims and objectives
Lucienne Meilak: The Directive from the local perspective
Directive 2010-65-EU: Background Note
Source: MEUSAC