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NMLA Marks World Maritime Day 2026 & Calls for Faster Domestication of Maritime Instruments as IMO Pushes “From Policy to Practice”.
The Nigerian Maritime Law Association (NMLA) joins the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the global maritime community today in marking World Maritime Day 2026, observed under the theme: “From Policy to Practice: Powering Maritime Excellence.” This is the first time in IMO’s history that a World Maritime Day theme has been adopted for a two-year cycle, running through 2026 and 2027, thereby emphasising the urgency the IMO attaches to moving beyond the negotiation, preparation and ratification of maritime treaties toward genuine enforcement of international maritime instruments to attain maritime excellence.
A relevant practical question posed by this theme is whether maritime laws, conventions and policies have been improving what happens aboard ships, in ports, along our coasts and throughout the supply chain. No doubt, excellence must be visible in safer voyages, protected seafarers, cleaner waters, efficient cargo movement and confidence in the enforcement of maritime rights. Today, maritime transportation faces the demands of safety, security, decarbonisation and technological change which need more than agreement on standards to tackle. Governments must give effect to their obligations; maritime administrations must have the capacity to enforce them; and industry must invest in the people, vessels and systems needed for compliance. The transition to cleaner shipping must also account for the financing and infrastructure challenges facing developing maritime nations.
The Global Picture
Whilst speaking on the theme, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez stated that regulations only deliver safer, more resilient and cleaner shipping when they are implemented, stressing that seafarers — the people working at sea — must remain the ultimate beneficiaries of that implementation. The observance comes at a difficult moment for global shipping: merchant vessels have come under attack in several conflict zones, from the Strait of Hormuz to the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, resulting in seafarer casualties and disruption to critical supply chains. Against this backdrop, IMO is highlighting the translation of its conventions, codes and guidelines into binding national legislations, backed by strong enforcement, and day-to-day operational practice across ports and administrations worldwide.
Nigeria’s place on the International Maritime Organization Council for the 2026–2027 biennium gives our country an important opportunity to contribute to global maritime decisions. It also strengthens the case for leadership by the Ministry of Marine Blue Economy and Maritime Agencies at home. Nigeria’s international voice will carry greater weight when signed or ratified maritime treaties are promptly domesticated supported by effective implementation and monitoring by relevant institutions to record the needed progress and benefits to our maritime industry.
As maritime lawyers, we recognise that sound regulation depends on legal certainty. When the rules are clear, up to date, fairly and speedily enforced by agencies and by efficient courts and credible arbitration, owners, charterers, cargo interests, financiers, seafarers and insurers and other stakeholders will have more confidence in the system. Disputes and claims are bound to arise in maritime transportation. Where they arise, timely and just resolutions are parts of a functioning maritime economy because the industry is highly capital intensive.
The Nigerian Context
As President of the Nigerian Maritime Law Association, I note that this theme also speaks directly to Nigeria’s own maritime journey. Nigeria has, over the years, built a commendable body of maritime laws and policies — from the repealed National Shipping Policy Act, to Nigerian Ports Authority Act, to Cabotage Act 2003, to Merchant Shipping Act of 2007, to the Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences (SPOMO) Act 2019, to the most recent Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency Act, to the ongoing work of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) on STCWC, ship finance and ship registration, and its work along with the Nigerian Navy in securing the Gulf of Guinea. These efforts, reinforced through the Deep Blue Project and sustained collaboration with international partners, have contributed to a measurable decline in piracy and armed robbery at sea within our waters and the updating and implementation of our maritime laws in recent years. However, as the tenure of the National Assembly ends in may 2027, it should quickly enact all maritime bills pending before it before the end of its tenure.
NMLA has been bridging the gap between maritime policy and maritime practice in Nigeria through its various maritime training activities including involvements in the organisation of, and provision of resource persons for, the International Maritime Seminar for Judges, training of Judges and Justices on maritime law and practice in conjunction with the National Judicial Institute, and its one-day maritime seminars and breakfast meetings.
As the IMO theme rightly reminds us, ratification and domestication of maritime treaties through legislation are only the starting point. So, we continue to advocate for:
Full and consistent implementation of the Cabotage Act, including a decisive move away from waiver dependency toward genuine indigenous tonnage capacity, shipbuilding and ownership capacity building;
Strengthened enforcement of the SPOMO Act, with continued judicial capacity-building to ensure quick and successful prosecution of piracy and maritime crimes;
Deeper harmonisation between Nigerian maritime legislation and international conventions, particularly in ship registration, environmental compliance, and seafarers’ welfare;
Sustained investment in maritime dispute resolution capacity in Nigeria, so that Lagos can compete credibly with established arbitration and admiralty centres, including London, with which our members frequently coordinate; and
Closer collaboration between the Nigerian Bar Association, the Judiciary, NIMASA, the Navy and industry stakeholders to ensure that policy gains translate into predictable, enforceable outcomes for shipowners, ship builders, ship operators, charterers, insurers and seafarers alike.
A Call to Action
On this World Maritime Day, the NMLA reaffirms its commitment to bridging the gap between maritime policy and maritime practice in Nigeria. We call on the Federal Government, Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, the National Assembly, to accelerate the ratification and domestication of outstanding international maritime treaties and to resource enforcement agencies adequately. Also, we call on Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, Nigerian Ports Authority, Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency, Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority, Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria and courts to effectively and efficiently implement and enforce our maritime laws and assess progress against outcomes that maritime businesses and the public can see, so that Nigeria’s maritime sector — and the Gulf of Guinea region as a whole — can achieve the safety, security and excellence this year’s theme demands.
We reaffirm our commitment to informed maritime law reform, professional education and constructive engagement with all stakeholders. The measure of maritime policy is what it enables people to do safely, efficiently and responsibly in practice and the benefits that it brings to our economy and people.
We also extend our solidarity to seafarers everywhere, particularly those navigating conflict-affected waters – the Strait of Hormuz to the Black Sea and Sea of Azov inclusive and reiterate that no framework of law is complete until it protects the men and women who keep global trade moving.
Mr. Mike Igbokwe,SAN,FCARB,FBR
President .
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