Eleven months ago, returning from twice addressing the International Maritime Organisation’s III Meeting in London, I was quite depressed. My hope in addressing IMO had been that I could persuade its member state delegates of the urgent need for substantial improvement in the safety of domestic ferries. I was well aware that IMO was a member state dominated and led organisation. However, I was not aware of just how dominated by its member states it was. Now I know why it takes so long for anything to be achieved in the hallowed halls of IMO’s magnificent headquarters building beside the River Thames.

Global trade association Interferry's 44th annual conference will be held this year in London with a wide-ranging speakers program focused on transformational change.

The FERRYSAFE project team formed by global trade association Interferry to study pronounced safety advances in Philippines ferry operations has completed the second of two visits to the country and is now developing best practice guidance to assist the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and other developing nations.

Johan Roos, Interferry's Regulatory Affairs Director, reports that he and other members of the FerrySafe team – Dr. Neil Baird (of Baird Maritime), Edwin Pang and Nelson Dela Cruz – were extremely pleased with the feedback from individuals and organisations that accepted their invitation for one-hour interview sessions.

A four-man team from global trade association Interferry will be in Manila from March 18 to 22 in the first stage of a project to study significant safety improvements in Philippines ferry operations and produce a “lessons learned” report to help other developing nations.