The All Aboard Alliance, an initiative of the Global Maritime Forum, has announced the Diversity@Sea initiative that will see 11 companies pilot a series of test measures to make life at sea more inclusive and attractive to all seafarers.
The participating companies are Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, BP, Cargill, Chevron Shipping, Diana Shipping, Dorian LPG, Gaslog, Hafnia, Stena, Synergy, and Swire Shipping. One of the participating vessels is Synergy’s Southern Reverence, which is scheduled to depart Singapore on October 30 helmed by Captain Radhika Menon, the first woman to become a captain in the Indian Merchant Navy.
, which is scheduled to depart Singapore on October 30 helmed by Captain Radhika Menon, the first woman to become a captain in the Indian Merchant Navy.The 11 participating companies have committed to meeting a series of minimum requirements onboard one pilot vessel within their fleet. These include having a minimum of four women onboard – a high number in an industry with less than 2% women – providing appropriate conditions for menstrual needs, providing 24/7 wi-fi for crew members, and ensuring that all seaborne staff have access to inclusive personal protective equipment.
The pilot vessels will set sail when these minimum requirements are met, with the first six scheduled to set sail no later than November 1. The measures will explore different approaches to improving work-life balance for everyone at sea within maritime shipping.
“We have a lot of companies involved, so this will bring out a lot of change because it sends a very loud message saying the industry is ready to accommodate women,” said Captain Menon.
In the first part of the Diversity@Sea project, 115 interviews with seafarers helped identify ’15 Key Pain Points for Women at Sea’, which was published earlier this year. Following this, leaders, seafarers, and experts from the involved companies worked together to co-design concrete measures to address these pain points.
“The pilot project seeks to test these chosen measures and proposed solutions aboard select vessels. We aim to gain practical insights into what constitutes an attractive and inclusive maritime career at sea and collectively take action to drive the necessary changes,” said Susanne Justesen, programme director at the Global Maritime Forum.
To track the progress of the pilot, the Global Maritime Forum will gather and assess data from crew members onboard the pilot vessels in partnership with independent maritime data analysis firm PsiFyi.
In related news, Splash reported earlier today on shipmanangement giant Columbia Group launching a mentoring programme to attract more women into the maritime sector.
