With the future of crewing high on the agenda, BIMCO and ICS are preparing for the launch of the latest Seafarer Workforce Report (previously known as the Manpower Report), the industry standard resource for ship operators, agencies and governments seeking the market intelligence they need to develop crewing and training strategies fit for the future.

“The shipping industry is evolving rapidly,” says Guy Platten, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Shipping. “With the challenges and changes wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic, decarbonisation and rapid technological developments, ship operators now more than ever need a management tool that provides them with an understanding of both today’s and tomorrow’s crewing landscape.”

The new Seafarer Workforce Report will be the essential tool in preparing ship operations for a post-COVID world and to ensure that the regulations and policies being developed will be fit for purpose.

Over the next few months shipping companies, national maritime administrations, and maritime education and training institutions will be asked to contribute to the new report. Their insight and data on the status of maritime training and recruitment, attrition and retention rates and the number and profiles of seafarers qualified and certificated under the STCW Convention will provide the foundation for this authoritative publication.

“I believe that this study will be one of the most important that we have launched. The COVID-19 pandemic represents a crew change crisis as well a financial crisis for our industry that may influence the global supply and demand of seafarers for many years to come. The result will help provide answers to where the shipping world is heading and what new crewing initiatives might be required,” says David Loosley, BIMCO Secretary General.

For the last 30 years, BIMCO and ICS have regularly conducted a comprehensive survey of the world’s supply and demand of seafarers, developing its format and content to meet the changing needs of the industry.

The new Seafarer Workforce Report is expected to be published in 2021. It will feature:

• Detailed estimates of the current supply and demand for seafarers for the world fleet, including country-specific figures.
• Forward projections for the likely supply and demand situations in the next decade.
• Identification of various maritime training, recruitment and retention trends and their potential consequences.