The Tripartite Technical Experts of the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) has considered the proposed amendments to the code of Maritime Labour Convention 2006, aimed at bringing up to date the ever increasing needs in the maritime sector.
Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Clement Illoh, made this known at the end of the Technical Tripartite meeting of NLAC on the amendment of the MLC 2006.
Illoh stated that the meeting, which was attended by stakeholders in the maritime sector including the social partners, was preparatory to the Special Tripartite Committee meeting of the International Labour Organization (ILO) in April, 2014.
To comply with the requirements of the ILO, the proposed amendment must be subjected to individual member country’s procedure for tripartite consultation mechanism.
In the case of Nigeria, the relevant stakeholders in the maritime sector had met and a special technical meeting of NLAC was convened to consider and approve the outcome of the stakeholders meeting before transmission to ILO, Geneva this week.
Illoh said: “Having considered the provisions of the proposed amendments, it would further strengthen the objective and goals of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006”.
He added that the amendments would provide effective mechanism to ensure commitment and compliance to the provisions of the MLC 2006 towards the sustenance of quality shipping and universal standards.
The permanent secretary further disclosed that Nigeria was the 35th Country to ratify the said Convention which was deposited with the ILO in June, 2013 noting that the Code of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 will become binding on Nigeria from June 17th 2014, exactly 12 months after ratification.
In accordance with MLC 2006, he stressed that any such amendment must be adopted by a Special Tripartite Committee for consideration by member states that have already ratified the Convention, adding that two sections of the Convention, A2.5 and A4.2, now being proposed for amendment were identified in 2010 for consideration at the first meeting of the Special Tripartite Committee after the MLC, 2006 entry into force.
“It is in the light of the critical importance of the maritime industry to the transformation agenda of the present administration and the overall turn-around of the country’s economy and due diligence to international standards that we commit the proposed amendments for due consideration and adoption by the NLAC before eventual submission to the ILO,” he added.
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