Pakistan pushes enforcement of global maritime standards

September 24, 2026 (MLN): Pakistan is applying international maritime rules across its maritime sector, with the government stressing effective enforcement, training and coordination between institutions.

Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry said this in a message marking World Maritime Day.

He said the 2026 theme, From Policy to Practice: Powering Maritime Excellence, highlighted the need to turn maritime policies and international standards into concrete action through legislation, enforcement, training and capacity building, according to a press release issued.

Junaid Chaudhry said meeting these standards required close cooperation among government bodies, regulators, port authorities, shipping companies and other stakeholders. He described training and technical cooperation as especially important for building the skills of seafarers and maritime professionals and keeping operational standards high.

On education, he said a Maritime Education Endowment Fund was being set up with seed money of Rs1.2bn to back higher education and skills development for maritime communities.

The Pakistan Marine Academy is also being upgraded to a degree-awarding institution to strengthen professional training in the sector.

On infrastructure, the minister said work had started on a Rs12bn project to modernise the Gadani shipbreaking yard, including upgrades to bring the facility in line with international safety and environmental standards.

He said environmental concerns had to become part of maritime operations, particularly efforts to curb marine pollution and support the shift to cleaner shipping. Ports were carrying out mangrove restoration, while the Karachi Port Trust had begun weekly campaigns to clear marine pollution.

Junaid Chaudhry tied the World Maritime Day theme to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), saying that acting on it in the maritime sector could advance infrastructure and innovation (SDG 9), climate action (SDG 13), ocean protection (SDG 14) and international partnerships (SDG 17).

He said the theme was especially relevant to Pakistan in port operations, shipping, maritime safety, seafarer training and marine environmental protection.

Setting out his long-term vision, he said the proposed Maritime Century (2047-2147) would focus on expanding deep-sea port capacity, building AI-enabled maritime industrial complexes for shipbuilding and ship recycling, and producing ships locally. It would also aim to develop green and digital ports with multimodal connectivity and promote regional maritime cooperation.

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