Flag State Performance and the Ratification of Global Conventions

 

Monitoring the flag states that register ships and ratifying international conventions are key to ensuring the smooth flow of global trade, and achieving safety and environment standards

 

1. The 12 largest flag states are responsible for 80% of the world’s shipping tonnage
2. The purpose of the Table is to encourage ship operators to put pressure on flag administrations if improvements are needed
3. Global regulatory frameworks must be in place to ensure the flow of global trade

In March 2019, ICS published the latest update of its Flag State Performance Table, which can be downloaded free of charge via the ICS website.

The annual update, which is also supported by the Asian Shipowners’ Association (ASA) and the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), provides an indication of the performance of individual flag administrations, using information available in the public domain.

The purpose of the ICS Table is to encourage ship operators to examine whether a flag state has substance before using it and to put pressure on their flag administrations if improvements might be needed, for example with regard to Port State Control records of ships under their flag, failure to ratify key IMO Conventions or regular attendance at IMO meetings.

Since the Table was launched 15 years ago, ICS has been encouraged by the ongoing improvement which the data has helped to demonstrate. Among the twelve largest flag states, responsible for 80% of the world merchant tonnage, none currently have more than one potential negative indicator and nine of these have no negative indicators at all.