Flipping the IMO

This joint MCST project with the United Nations Foundation (UNF) UNF and the University College London University Maritime Advisory Services (UCL UMAS) UCL focuses on ongoing professional capacity development for Pacific Island government delegations to enable them to effectively negotiate for high ambition outcomes in the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in relation to reducing emissions from international ships.

In its first year (to June 2023) the project supported:

• 93 delegate in-person attendances at six IMO Meetings in London, including four Ministers attending the watershed MEPC 80 meeting where IMO adopted unanimously a Revised Strategy for emissions reduction from ships where the Pacific Islands played a catalytic role in securing higher ambition https://asiapacificreport.nz/2023/07/08/un-shipping-agency-endorses-1-5-degrees-plan-after-relentless-pacific-lobbying/
• 35 delegate in-person attendances at related fora such as the Singapore Maritime Week and the Panama One Ocean Summit and the 6PAC Regional Talanoa hosted in Fiji in May 2023.

Through workplace internships, postgraduate scholarships, technical and legal support on tap and ‘on the job’ experiences, the project continues to demonstrate the success of country-driven programming that focuses on education, research and training through a Pacific lens. With more Pacific governments choosing to become part of this initiative of initially six Pacific IMO member states, the ‘6PAC’ is now the ‘6PAC+’.

Pacific Island delegates meet with IMO Secretary General (July 2023)

Now entering its second year, the project team are focused on the April 2024 GHG meetings and the Steering Committee work on comprehensive impact assessments of mid-term measures to reduce emissions from ships, including the GHG levy proposed by Marshall Islands and Solomon Islands. Other focus areas relate to ensuring an equitable transition, including technical cooperation, legal principles, and transparency in IMO decision-making.

Pacific Island Governments involved in this initiative: Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu