TEHRAN – Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization (PMO) has been following a new strategy since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21) to develop and facilitate port and maritime services in the country, the PMO announced in a report published on its website on Tuesday.

In this regard, the organization has taken various measures including the drafting of a strategic document to award the berthing and ships separation services to the private sector, and also the drafting of a plan for the transfer of ship registration services to the private sector.

Connecting the maritime system to the social security system, setting up barcodes in vessels’ journey permits to facilitate their inquiry at foreign ports are also among the measures taken by the Ports and Maritime Organization to enhance maritime and port services.

The establishment of a secretariat for the investigation of seafarers' disciplinary violations, as well as the smartening of the services provided for the employees working on commercial, service, and fishing vessels are other important steps that have been taken by the organization since the beginning of the current fiscal year.

Back in October, Deputy PMO Head Jalil Eslami had said that amending registration instructions and determining the schedule for mooring of ocean-going vessels at the country's ports were among the main programs of his organization for the second half of the current Iranian calendar year (ends on March 20, 2022).

According to Eslami, another important program for the mentioned period was to design and implement mechanisms for monitoring and supervision of the shipbuilding industry which includes the repair of vessels and offshore structures.

This program aims to monitor the construction industry and ship repair workshops in a more effective way to ensure their productivity, he said.

Development of safety regulations for fishing and non-conventional vessels by the end of the current fiscal year is also on the PMO’s agenda, Eslami had added.

He noted that the instructions for registering, and scheduling the mooring of ocean-going vessels at the country's ports will be updated in accordance with the organization’s current policies.

EF/MA