Solomon Islands attended the 73rd Session of the Technical Cooperation Committee (TCC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), held in London from 16 to 19 October 2023.
The event marked a resounding success for the Pacific region in raising a unified voice and calling for effective technical cooperation and sustainable maritime development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).

The Solomon Islands delegation was led by H.E. Mr. Moses Kouni Mose, Ambassador to the European Union. The delegation comprised key members, including Mr. Thierry Nervale, Director of the Solomon Islands Maritime Authority (SIMA), Mr. Allen Kisi Ofea, Principal Officer Pollution and Safety Response at SIMA. Also attending was Mrs. Nester Nalangu-Dara, a SIMA officer seconded to the IMO and working for the Regional Presence Office (RPO) of IMO in the Pacific Islands region.
The delegation presented a pivotal paper on maritime development and technical cooperation in Solomon Islands, emphasizing some of its maritime development challenges.
It underscored the urgency of streamlining technical cooperation and implementing major projects to seize the opportunity for safe, green, clean, digital and gender-just maritime transport accommodating a growing population and embracing technologies.
Regarding the issue of IMO regional presence and coordination, Solomon Islands reaffirmed its commitments to support the establishment of the Pacific RPO and pledged to fund the position of IMO officer in Solomon Islands working for the RPO in Fiji.
Solomon Islands demonstrated strong regional leadership and commitments in supporting the RPO and the Pacific Community (SPC) submission to develop a Sustainable Maritime Transport (SMART) framework in the Pacific.
The Solomon Islands delegation also emphasized the imperative of enhancing gender equality in the maritime industry, acknowledging cultural issues but reaffirming an unwavering commitment to support the Solomon Islands Women in Maritime Association (SIWIMA) and to maintain the remarkable achievement of having 49% female staffing at all levels of SIMA.
TCC is one of the subsidiary bodies of IMO’s governance framework concentrating of the organisation on mobilising resources, implementing partnerships, increasing IMO’s regional presence, promoting women’s participation in the maritime sector, and building capacity of its members to give full effect to IMO instruments particularly SIDS and LDCs.
—MFAET PRESS RELEASE
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