Liberia has become the first ship registry to be admitted to the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN) as an associate member.
The Liberian Registry is comprised of over 4,325 vessels aggregating 157 million gross tons, representing 11% of the world’s oceangoing fleet.
“We are greatly honoured to be the first ship registry admitted as an associate member of the MACN. The organization has done great work fighting corrupt practices in some of the most difficult regions in the industry,” Alfonso Castillero, CCO of the Liberian Registry, commented.
“Together with MACN, we can help provide the crew of these ships (the fleet of 4,325 ships) with processes and procedures as well as with firm backing and support to defeat bribery attempts. This backing serves to allay fears and prevent negative recourse by unscrupulous officials seeking enrichment at the expense of shipowners,” Castillero added.
Welcoming the Liberian flag as an associate member, Cecilia Müller Torbrand, MACN’s Programme Director, said: “As we have already shown, strength in numbers is a central part of how MACN can drive change. It is vital we look for ways to include maritime-related businesses who want to take part in this fight. Flag states are a central part of the shipping world and we look forward to the contributions Liberia will make to MACN’s future efforts.”
“We look forward to being an active participant and sharing with the group findings and lessons learned to improve everyone’s ability to fight corruption. We would encourage other flag states to consider joining the network, because the more we work together the better the results will be for crew, owners, and the wider shipping community,” Benson Peretti, the Liberian flag’s MACN representative, said.
MACN is a global business network working towards the vision of a maritime industry free of corruption. Established in 2011, MACN has grown to include over 100 members globally.