MMA inspector wins Chancellor's Award for Academic Excellence

October 12 was a special day for 103 students from 42 countries, including Malta, who received their Master of Science degrees in Maritime Affairs at the World Maritime University in Malmö, Sweden. The degrees were conferred upon the graduands by WMU's Chancellor, William O'Neil, Secretary-General of the UN's International Maritime Organisation.

On graduating, Kevin Ghirxi, a Flag and Port State Control Inspector at the Merchant Shipping Directorate of the Malta Maritime Authority, was delighted when he was additionally awarded the Chancellor's Medal for Academic Excellence.

The award is presented to the graduate who achieves the highest grade points average at the end of the academic studies. Mr Ghirxi specialised in maritime safety and environmental protection. His academic enrolment at the WMU is an integral part of the Authority's Capacity Building Programme, which will enable the Authority to improve its efficiency as a maritime administration.

Mr Ghirxi's participation, including related expenses, was financed by the EU, under the 2000 pre-accession funds.

In partial fulfilment for the award of the M.Sc. degree, Mr Ghirxi submitted a dissertation, which critically analysed three aspects related to the implementation of the IMO Code for the investigation of marine casualties and incidents.

Mr Ghirxi not only researched the practical implications of the implementation and application of the IMO Code, but also the theoretical and legal aspects. In his writings, Mr Ghirxi brought his real life experience in marine casualty investigations.

The dissertation demonstrates that the IMO Code, being a soft law and therefore non-mandatory, may be seen by politicians as a weakness and a loophole through which they avoid its implementation. The study cites scholars and academic writers who have adamant standpoints that this should not be the case.

The main reason rests on the persuasive character and the potential of soft law as a source of inspiration. The study also criticises the blame culture and spontaneous reactions, taken in the aftermath of very serious casualties. These reactions may result in fallible decisions; leading to the build-up of latent failures and hence defying the objective of the IMO Code and frustrate its implementation.

The second main study of the dissertation examines the different roles of marine casualty investigating bodies in relation to the implementation of the IMO Code. The study attempts to analyse why a minority of IMO member states have established a separate legal entity from the maritime administration to investigate marine casualties and incidents.

The research extends to the perspectives of various jurisdictions and to how different policies interact and what results from these interactions. The study submits that even in view of the IMO's International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978, as amended, a complete segregation between the determination of guilt and safety investigations is essential.

The third and final study focuses on casualty investigation reports, vis-à-vis hindsight and foresight. A casualty investigation report is pivotal because it serves as a vehicle for the promulgation of safety recommendations to the stakeholders, including the IMO.

Research by the writer suggests that in all probability, most of the marine casualty investigation reports are inadequate to serve the purpose of foresight. The view expressed in the study is that the reaction of the maritime industry should be an adequate casualty investigation and a published investigation report.

The casualty investigation report creates hindsight, which can be used to achieve foresight and a reduction in future maritime casualties.

The study concludes by linking these three aspects into a model and provides a visual link of how, rather than benefiting from the lessons learnt, deficiencies in these three major areas may lead to further casualties.

Extracts from Mr Ghirxi's dissertation are currently being co-authored to be presented in a conference on maritime transport in Barcelona this month.

Mr Ghirxi is the seventh Maltese graduate from the WMU. Although this is the first time that a Maltese graduate won the Chancellor's Medal, all previous Maltese graduated with very good grades. The Maltese graduates from WMU include Capt. Mario Grech (1989), Jonathan Pace (1990), Charles Abela (1993), Mario Mifsud (1997), John Alden (1998) and David Kerr (2002).

The WMU was established in 1983 by the IMO. The M.Sc. standard programme lasts 17 months on a full-time basis and students have five specialisations to choose from. To date, almost 1,800 graduates can be found in 140 countries.

Many of them hold senior positions in maritime education, heads of institutions or as professors. Others hold key positions in maritime administrations, ports and shipping companies. WMU graduates are also increasingly called on to contribute to international maritime fora, including the IMO.

The Malta Maritime Authority has a very close relationship with the WMU. Officials from the Merchant Shipping Directorate visit the university to deliver lectures to students specialising in maritime administration.

Moreover, in collaboration with the Directorate, the WMU annually organises a field trip to Malta for WMU students specialising in Port Management.