World Maritime Day 2019 – Empowering Women in the Maritime Community
In the year 2019, where technology introduced us to artificial intelligence, 5G networks, the Internet of Things and many notable advancements, still, some issues take longer to progress. This, in particular when we are referring to the maritime industry, and more specifically, the presence of women, in this specific business sector. In regards to this much discussed subject, it is intriguing to learn that today women embody only two percent of the world’s 1.2 million seafarers and 94 percent of them, are working in the cruise industry.
This comes to underline and support this year’s World Maritime Day, which is righteously dedicated to women and their empowerment in the maritime community.
Although it is proven that the shipping sector has been historically a male-dominated industry, the IMO believes that empowering women in this field of business outgrows productivity and progress and cannot but produce substantial benefits for stakeholders in the global maritime community.
This year’s theme provides an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of gender equality, in line with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, and to highlight the significance and yet the under-utilised contribution of women in the maritime world.
Product Manager of SafeLearn, Mr Valentinos Steliou shared his views in regards to this important cause and noted specifically that this year’s theme for World Maritime Day, goes hand-in-hand with one of SafeLearn’s first core values, to ensure equal opportunities for online maritime education to everyone, regardless of gender.
“It is with great pleasure that we observe and support such significant initiatives dedicated to the women of our industry. Moreover, this occasion comes to support our belief of gender equality in the maritime sector, which we strongly think will be the key to push the industry to move forward, with new ideas through this scope”-, Mr Steliou states on the occasion of World Maritime 2019.
