PSC
Abuja MOU
Nineteen west and central African nations have agreed to work towards establishing a Port State Control (PSC) regime in the shortest possible time in order to eradicate sub-standard ships from the region.
The nations, at a meeting in Accra, Ghana held from 17 to 20 February 1998, agreed on a preliminary draft text of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and a draft Training Programme. They also agreed to make every effort to put in place competent maritime Administrations where they do not already exist, and to strengthen existing maritime Administrations, in order to implement an effective PSC regime. The Accra meeting agreed to consider in detail the draft Memorandum of Understanding, and to discuss the location of a Secretariat and Information Centre, at a Second Preparatory Meeting held during September 1998 in Guinea. A third and final meeting during 1999 was held to adopt the agreement.
Abuja MOU
| Participating Maritime Authorities & Associate Members |
Angola, Benin, Cameroon,* Cabo Verde, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),* Equatorial Guinea,* Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania,* Namibia,* Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa and Togo |
|---|---|
| Observers |
IMO, ILO, Mali, Burkina Faso, MOWCA, APMIAS, FAO and eight other regional PSC regimes |
| Target Inspection Rate | 15% annual inspection rate per country within 3 years |
| Relevant Instruments | LL66 SOLAS 74 SOLAS PROT 78 MARPOL 73/78 STCW 78 COLREG 72 TONNAGE 69 ILO Convention No. 147 |
| Inspection Priorities | Ships visiting a port of a State, the Authority of which is a signatory to the Memorandum, for the first time or after an absence of 12 months or more |
| Ships which have been permitted to leave the port of State, the Authority of which is a signatory to the Memorandum, on the condition that the deficiencies noted must be rectified within a specified period, upon expiry of such period | |
| Ships which have been reported by pilots or port authorities as having deficiencies which may prejudice their safe navigation | |
| Ships carrying dangerous or polluting goods, which have failed to report all relevant information concerning the ships particulars, the ships movements & concerning the dangerous or polluting goods being carried to the competent authority of the port & coastal State | |
| Ships which have been suspended from their class for safety reasons in the course of the preceding six months | |
| Ships whose statutory certificates on the ship's construction & equipment have not been issued in accordance with the relevant instruments | |
| Amendments entry into force | Will take effect 60 days after acceptance or at the end of any different period determined unantechnicalusly by the representatives of the authorities in the Committee |
| Committee Composition | A Representative of each of the authorities |
| Secretariat location | Mrs. Mfon Ekong USORO (Nigeria) 1, Joseph Street, Marina Lagos, Nigeria |
| Information Centre location | Mrs. Natalia KHARCHENKO Abuja MoU Information Centre (AMIS), Moscow, Russian Federation |
| Date of Signature | 22th October 1999 |
| Official Languages | English, French and Portuguese |
Local Point
Mr. B. Ganguli
Secretary
Indian Ocean MoU Secretariat
Head Land, Sada Near Antartic Study Centre
Vasco-da-Gama, GOA-403 804
India
Phone No.: +91 832 520931
Fax No. : +91 832 520045
