To celebrate World Maritime Day 2021, Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry (SDM) is organizing an all-day immersive experience in Limassol on Saturday 23rd October. The series of public events will bring together the vast range of organizations with a connection to the sea to showcase how fundamental it is to entertainment, education, and the economy.

This one-day experience, entitled “Thalassa 2021: SEA to Live – Experience SHIPPING”, will incorporate activities including diving excursions, beach cleaning and water sports lessons. Prominent local figures will share information on the role of shipping, the value of the blue economy, and the importance of marine environmental protection. In addition, visitors will have the opportunity to learn about marine archeology, maritime studies and the seafaring profession, visit art exhibitions, and watch short films on the sea and shipping.

As the theme for World Maritime Day 2021 is “Seafarers: at the core of shipping’s future”, Cyprus SDM, together with the International Transport Workers’ Federation, is organizing a “Run for Seafarers” to show appreciation and acknowledgement of the critical role that they play in facilitating world trade.

Mr. Vassilios Demetriades, Cyprus Shipping Deputy Minister, commented: “World Maritime Day presents the perfect opportunity to show our appreciation for our invisible heroes who tirelessly keep our supply chains intact. We feel a responsibility for making seafarers more visible by recognizing their contribution and showing our respect with concrete actions. We hope that the running event at Thalassa 2021 will help to achieve this.

“Cyprus made a deliberate strategic choice when the pandemic was at its initial stages to invest in the welfare of the crews as a measure to mitigate the negative impact of COVID-19 to the shipping industry and international trade. As a result, Cyprus was one of the first countries worldwide that recognized seafarers as key workers and introduced practical measures for crew changes. We have also introduced a National Plan to provide COVID-19 vaccinations to 40,000 seafarers on board Cyprus flagged ships or ships managed from Cyprus. To date, around 10,000 seafarers have been vaccinated. Cyprus is also exploring the possibility of becoming a vaccination hub for all visiting seafarers, as a further step to safeguard seafarer welfare.”

The series of events is organized in collaboration with the Municipality of Limassol and will culminate at the end of the day with a music concert in the Old Port Square.