Karachi: Pakistan Navy celebrated World Maritime Day (WMD) 2024, with this year’s theme ‘Navigating the Future: Safety First’. The year 2024 marks 50 years since the adoption of the 1974 International Convention for Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Convention, the key IMO treaty regulating maritime safety.
This day is observed annually to highlight the maritime sector’s contribution to economic development and to raise awareness about the importance of shipping safety, maritime security, and marine environmental protection. The theme is closely linked with the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG-7, which focuses on ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy by facilitating access to clean energy research.
Safety has always been a core value for the Pakistan Navy. PN has instituted measures to uphold the “safety first” principle onboard all seagoing platforms as well as ashore. In his message on World Maritime Day, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf emphasized the need to align national objectives with the ongoing global shift towards sustainable and green maritime practices, demonstrating determination, commitment, and resolve. He underscored PN’s efforts toward maritime safety, which remain a testament to its unwavering dedication, and reiterated Pakistan Navy’s commitment to ensuring maritime safety and upholding environmental mandates.
On this occasion, Pakistan Navy organized a series of activities to emphasize the significance of maritime sector. Major events included seminars at Pakistan Navy War College, Lahore, under the auspices of the Maritime Centre of Excellence (MCE) and the National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA). Other activities across PN units included Maritime Gala at Pakistan Maritime Museum, awareness walks, showcasing banners/ panaflexes, maritime awareness lectures at Bahria Colleges/Universities, and essay competitions at Field Commands. These events play an important role in enhancing maritime awareness among the public.
