Transport, Shipping & Maritime Committee

• New ports in Egypt and challenges facing the maritime sector in the coming decade - November 12
• Rights and duties of maritime agents - October 2001

New ports in Egypt and challenges facing the maritime sector in the coming decade

Admiral Mohsen El Masry, head of the maritime department at the Ministry of Transport, spoke on November 12 at the Syrian Club in Alexandria about the coming decade for the maritime sector.

Ports are one of Egypt’s main sources of income, and maritime transport has been developed extensively in the past three decades, he said. There have been advances in shipbuilding and port construction and increases in trade volume at Egyptian ports. Most recently, new information-technology systems have been introduced.

From the ministry’s viewpoint, there has been an emphasis on the role of the labor force, with recognition that workers are the main source of success in any sector. "The Ministry of Transport implemented a new strategy for the development of the maritime sector, with the condition that the new strategy should work in harmony with the country’s overall policies and strategies," El Masry said.

Thus, the private sector has become involved in maritime and transport development strategies, as can be seen in several projects carried out in various parts of Egypt under the ministry’s supervision. For example, the private sector is involved in upgrading the port of Alexandria, with enlargement and deepening to allow large ships to use the port, along with similar upgrades for Port Said, Dekheila, Al Arish and most of the Red Sea ports, including Sharm Al Sheikh and Safaga.

Meanwhile, navigation safety has been improved in the Red Sea and at all of Egypt’s Mediterranean ports. A new VTS system that monitors the navigation and movement of ships was first installed at Sharm Al Sheikh last year, and 11 more VTS stations are now under construction in the Gulf of Suez area and at various other Red Sea ports.

New marketing plans to promote Egyptian ports are forthcoming, El Masry said.

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Rights and duties of maritime agents - October 2001

The Legal Affairs and Shipping & Maritime committees met in Alexandria on October 14 to discuss "rights and duties of maritime agents." The speakers were Abdel Rafea Moussa, professor of commercial and business law, Zagazig University, and Tarek Fahmy, chairman and managing director of Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) in Egypt. More than 60 attended the meeting.

Moussa focused on maritime agents who used to work in the public sector but now work in the private sector. These agents often encounter problems in dealing with the Customs Authority. There is confusion between agents, shippers, captains and the Customs Authority over who is responsible for cargo when it is in port. Moussa advised that Law 163, which deals with these relationships, should be modified to address this confusion.

Fahmy then explained the rights and duties of shipping agents in practical terms. He said that the implementation of Law 1 of 1998 has created problems, especially with the authorities asking agents for financial guarantees on cargo.

As for the future of shipping, Fahmy explained that globalization would bring about the end of most small and medium-size shippers. He also predicted that the Internet would have a huge impact on how shipping information is retrieved and reservations made.

At the conclusion of the meeting, guests agreed that forming an agents’ consortium to defend themselves against the customs and sales tax authority was the best solution to all problems.

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