Attachments
This weekly bulletin is compiled to give all stakeholders an overview of the current impact of COVID-19 on Pacific shipping activities. It draws on sources from government, commercial and humanitarian sectors. The bulletin is circulated each Tuesday.
Overview
Maritime workers have returned to work in Port Botany. This will ease port congestion and shipping delays. Rolling industrial action has exacerbated the regional imbalance of empty containers. Asian load ports, particularly in Vietnam are facing a shortage of empty containers.
Difficulties in facilitating crew change continue to be one of the most pressing issues facing the global shipping industry. This has generated additional complications and costs for shipping companies. Limited crew changes are being conducted in Fiji and New Zealand. Globally there is a huge back-log of ships' crew who have either completed their contracts on board or are onshore waiting to join ships. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) requests raising the issue of seafarers and the crew change crisis during the upcoming high-level week of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly beginning on 22 September 2020. ILO, IMO and the UN Global Compact are organizing a side event during that week, to raise the visibility of the crew change crisis.
http://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/HotTopics/Pages/FAQ-on-crew-changes-and-repatriation-of-seafarers.aspx No PICTs are currently reporting food security issues, or fuel shortages due to interrupted shipping supply, as far as we are aware.