EU and Canada strengthen ties on maritime safety

Today, the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport and the Canadian Department of Transport signed a Memorandum of Cooperation that will improveinternational cooperation on maritime safety.

Over the past years, the Commission has built up a strong partnership with Canada on maritime transport through sharing experiences and best practices on maritime safety, as well as coordinating work at the level of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

The non-binding Memorandum of Cooperation signed today will further strengthen the ties in relation to coordinated monitoring and oversight of the mutually recognised organisations.. It will help the Commission and Canada measure and verify the performance of these recognised organisations, thereby increasing transparency and safety. The Memorandum also relieves the burden on recognised organisations by potentially reducing the need for duplicate oversight activities.

Furthermore, this Memorandum of Cooperation could serve as a model for future agreements between the signing parties and other IMO Member States.