From November 3 to 5, the First North Bund International Shipping Forum, jointly hosted by the Shanghai Municipal People's Government and the Ministry of Transport, opened in Shanghai. The forum consisted of one main forum, two parallel forums and five thematic forums. Among them, the "Safety and Cooperation" thematic forum was organized by the China Maritime Safety Administration, with support from the Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration and Shanghai Baosteel Shipping Co., Ltd. Its theme was "Joining Hands for Safety Assurance and Jointly Promoting Shipping Development," aiming to thoroughly implement the new development philosophy, promote shipping safety cooperation and exchange, and help advance high-quality global shipping development.
On the morning of November 5, the "Safety and Cooperation" forum was successfully held. Zhou Ya, Deputy Secretary-General of the Shanghai Municipal Government, delivered remarks; Yang Xinzhai, Deputy Director of the China Maritime Safety Administration, presided; Cao Desheng, Director of the China Maritime Safety Administration, and Xu Zuyuan, former Vice Minister of Transport and IMO Maritime Goodwill Ambassador, delivered keynote speeches; Chen Chuanquan, Director of the East China Sea Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Transport, Mathias Jonas, Secretary-General of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), Sun Yuqing, President of Dalian Maritime University, Li Changhui, Director of the ILO Country Office for China and Mongolia, Xu Pengzhan, Director of the China Transport Telecommunications & Information Center, Francis Zachariae, Secretary-General of the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities, and Chen Jianrong, General Manager of the Ship Management Center of COSCO Shipping Energy Transportation Co., Ltd. and Senior Captain, delivered thematic speeches. The forum also released the outcome document "Guiding Opinions on Strengthening the Development of a High-Quality Seafarer Workforce."
In his keynote speech, Director Cao Desheng pointed out that the "Safety and Cooperation" thematic forum was held to implement the spirit of President Xi Jinping's keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Second United Nations Global Sustainable Transport Conference and the spirit of Minister Li Xiaopeng's speech at the North Bund International Shipping Forum, and to further share experience, exchange ideas and build consensus on international shipping safety and cooperation. He stressed the need to open new horizons for safety and cooperation and to achieve new and greater accomplishments in promoting high-quality shipping development. First, it is necessary to accelerate the creation of a modern and intelligent safety management framework, strengthen the "hard connectivity" of infrastructure and the "soft connectivity" of institutions and rules, actively build an integrated waterborne transport safety assurance system spanning land, sea, air and space, and develop an all-factor waterborne "big traffic management" system, so as to highlight the safety underpinnings of high-quality shipping development. Second, it is necessary to actively practice an open and inclusive philosophy of international cooperation, continue to strengthen dialogue and consultation, actively fulfill international obligations, share China's experience in a timely manner, and demonstrate China's responsibility in high-quality shipping development. Third, it is necessary to promote the formation of a strong and robust support service system, foster a sound shipping business environment, cultivate a high-quality seafarer workforce, carry forward and promote maritime culture, and forge a strong backing for high-quality shipping development.
