Among the flags with the highest performances in all categories and with the highest quality characteristics, the Greek flag is included, according to the report Shipping Industry Flag State Performance 2023/2024of the International Maritime Chamber.

The high performance of the Greek flag is in all categories, both at the level of the American Coast Guard and in Europe with the Paris MOU, but also in Asia based on the Tokyo MOU.

According to the International Chamber of Shipping report the vast majority of flag states show continued positive performance for the safety and environmental performance of merchant ships.

Greece, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Denmark, Hong Kong (China), Japan, Liberia, Malta, Marshall Islands, Norway, Portugal, Singapore and the United Kingdom are among the countries that collect positive indicators for all criteria.

However, some flag states (including Togo, Algeria and Comoros) continue to record large amounts of negative performance, underscoring the need for shipowners to encourage and maintain dialogue with their flag states, helping to facilitate any necessary improvements to benefit safety, environmental protection and decent working conditions.

A number of smaller flag states also show an increase in the number of positive performance indicators compared to the previous year, such as Costa Rica, Egypt, Mexico and Thailand.

An overall improvement was observed this year in flag state participation in International Maritime Organization (IMO) meetings, as well as in the use of recognized organizations with good performance that have been authorized by flag state administrations – as evidenced by port state inspection data – to conduct inspections and certify ships to ensure compliance with IMO and International Labor Organization (ILO) regulations governing safety, environmental performance and labor standards.

Increase in ship and crew abandonments

At the same time, the number of abandoned ships and crews in 2023 internationally shows an increase of 11% compared to 2022.

According to data published by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) in 2023 a total of 132 ship abandonments were reported, which is 13 more than in 2022 – an increase of 10.92%.

The seafarers who contacted the international federation from the abandoned ships numbered 1,676, while the wages owed from the 129 cases reported by the ITF itself exceed $12.1 million.

Indian seafarers are the most abandoned, with more than 400 cases reported to the Transport Workers’ International Federation.

The ITF to date has received more than $10.9 million in back wages from 60 vessels so far.

According to the international federation’s estimates, the final figure will exceed $12.1 million as cases take time to resolve and other seafarers come forward in the interim, increasing the number of recoverable wages. .

The 2006 Maritime Labor Convention (MLC) considers seafarers abandoned when the shipowner does not cover the costs of repatriation or has left them without the necessary maintenance and support or has otherwise unilaterally severed ties with them, including non-payment of contractual wages for a period of at least two months.

Steve Trowsdale, the ITF’s inspection co-ordinator, described the continued rise in the number of seafarers leaving as unacceptable, stressing that it was not a “disposable commodity”.

He stressed that “seafarers and their families are paying the ultimate price for shipowners’ greed and non-compliance, enduring the inhumane consequences of a system that jeopardizes their well-being, dignity and basic human rights.”

According to the ITF, the highest number of ship abandonments by flag state were: Panama (23), Palau (12), Cameroon (11), St. Kitts and Nevis (8), Comoros (6), Tanzania (7), Togo (6) and 8 other ships of unknown identity.