"Our industry depends on people"

We talk about ships, operations and trade flows. But in the end, our industry depends on people.

This is why BIMCO has chosen to speak plainly about the pressures seafarers face today. And it is why I know some are uneasy about it.

I have heard the concern: that by drawing attention to the risks and injustices, we might discourage people from choosing a career at sea.

I understand that reaction. The issues we are highlighting are uncomfortable - and that is precisely the point. Pretending these realities do not exist does not make seafaring safer, fairer, or more attractive in the long term. It simply delays change.

A career at sea depends on trust. Trust that seafarers will be treated fairly. Trust that the law will protect them offshore as it does on land. And trust that when things go wrong, they will be supported and not be left isolated, criminalised or presumed guilty without due process.

When that trust weakens, recruitment and retention suffer anyway. Whether we talk about it or not.

Young people pay attention to what is happening in the world. Families read the headlines. And the gap between official reassurance and lived experience is impossible to hide in today’s connected world.

But honesty alone is not enough. It must be matched by action. And I want to be clear about what we are doing at BIMCO to help move this agenda forward.

BIMCO’s Maritime Safety & Security Committee, chaired by Bjørn Højgaard, plays a critical role in ensuring that seafarer safety, security and fair treatment do not slip down the list of industry priorities when attention shifts elsewhere. It is a priority shared across BIMCO leadership, with the President placing seafarers at the heart of his presidency. These issues are complex, often political, and sometimes inconvenient. Which is precisely why they need constant focus at senior level.

We are also continuing to invest in evidence, not just advocacy. Soon we will publish a new edition of the BIMCO and ICS Seafarer Workforce Report – a piece of work many of you follow closely. It is highly anticipated because it looks beyond headline numbers and into the trends, pressures and long‑term challenges shaping the global seafarer workforce. It asks hard questions about supply, demand and sustainability. And it does so with a clear-eyed view of what lies ahead.

On the regulatory front, we continue to support the work of the IMO, because lasting solutions in shipping only come from international rules applied consistently. Last year, BIMCO contributed to the drafting of the IMO guidelines on the fair treatment of seafarers detained in connection with alleged crimes. Those guidelines were developed in response to a troubling rise in the number of detained seafarers reported by the IMO and the ILO. It is one example of how speaking up, staying engaged and working through the right forums can lead to practical progress.

Our seafarer campaign is not anti‑career‑at‑sea. Quite the opposite. By being honest about the problems, we are addressing the very issues that undermine confidence in seafaring as a profession.

We want governments and authorities to confront systemic failures. From unjust detention to the uneven application of international law.

We want stronger protections and proper due process for seafarers who are doing their jobs professionally and responsibly.

And we want to reinforce pride in a role that has always required skill, judgement and resilience, but too often receives little recognition when it matters most.

Most of all, we want to help secure the long‑term future of the maritime workforce. Because without seafarers, there is no shipping. And without shipping, global trade does not function.

This is not about amplifying issues. It is about credibility. You cannot build a sustainable workforce on reassuring words alone. People choose professions they believe will treat them fairly when circumstances turn against them.

Meaningful change does not begin with comforting stories. It begins with honesty, backed by action, and reinforced by collective effort.

If we want people to choose a life at sea with confidence, we have a responsibility to confront the realities and work to improve them - not hide them.

That is what this campaign stands for: visibility, accountability and change to support a stronger, more sustainable future for seafarers and shipping.

And there is a simple way to help push this conversation beyond our own industry.

I encourage you to watch our latest BIMCO film, Unseen at Sea. If the film resonates with you, please share it with colleagues, partners, stakeholders and through your own channels.

Awareness does not solve these problems on its own. But without awareness, nothing changes.