During a Visit to the Arab League and the Egyptian Ministry of Transport
“Tasneef” Continues its Efforts to Support the Arab Maritime Sector

Abu Dhabi, 28th of June, 2015: In virtue of its role as the first Arab classification society developing standards and specifications in the field of maritime navigation, and issuing compliance and inspection certificates for ships and maritime facilities, Emirates Classification Society “Tasneef” sent a delegation to visit the Arab League in order to hold negotiations to join the wider Arab maritime market and receive the Arab governmental accreditation as an accredited authority in the field of maritime classification. 

Eng. Rashed AlHebsi, CEO of Tasneef expressed his optimism with this visit saying “our visit to the Arab League is considered an important step to implement best practices when it comes to providing offshore-ship classification services, maritime training and technical consulting, in addition to research and development which will ultimately reflect on the journey of joint Arab action”.

On the other hand, Captain Waleed Al Nahdi, Commercial and Marketing Director at Tasneef explained the reasons for this visit saying “in addition to the constant communication we have with official bodies and concerned authorities to get the largest possible number of accreditations in the Arab world, we are searching for the best deals and partnerships with authorities and companies working in our field dependent on the quality of services we provide to our customers”.

A Unified Arab Maritime Strategy

In support of the cooperation relations between Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, Tasneef’s delegation visit to Egypt included constructive meetings with Dr. Mohamed Al-Tuwaijri, Assistant Secretary General for Economic Affairs in the Arab League; Vice-Admiral Essam Badawi, Secretary General of the Arab Union for Sea Ports; Dr. Ismail Abdul Ghaffar, President of the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport, along with Vice-Admiral Mahmoud Hatem Al-Qadi, President of the Arab Federation of Maritime Chambers. The meetings focused on searching for ways that support joint action in order to place Tasneef at the forefront of the Arab maritime sector as a supporter and a maritime arm capable of meeting the needs of the Arab maritime market which ultimately benefits the governmental maritime sector and companies working in the Arab maritime market.

AlNahdi has expressed his satisfaction with the positive aspects of this visit and its role in enhancing the position of Tasneef in the Arab world saying “through the support of the Arab League, we aim to get the accreditation of all Arab countries which will contribute significantly to speeding up the process of joining the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), we are also seeking to establish a regional office for Tasneef in Egypt”. 

AlNahdi also pointed out the importance of the delegation’s visit to Egypt in establishing the idea of cooperation in the Arab maritime community through introducing an Arab maritime strategy that adopts the idea of maritime integration as an alternative to competition especially among Arab special economic and free zones. This maritime integration also aims to increase the size of Arab trade, raise its contribution in the global shipping industry, the development of Arab maritime transport fleets, expansion in establishing regional shipping companies, and the encouragement of mergers and alliances of existing maritime entities.  

A Fruitful Visit to Egypt

On the other hand, within its efforts to consolidate and lay the foundations of a unified Arab maritime industry, “Tasneef” visited the Egyptian Ministry of Transport where the delegation met  Engineer Hani Dahi, the Egyptian Minister of Transport; Dr. Ahmed Mohamed Amin, Advisor to the Minster in Maritime Shipping Affairs; Vice-Admiral Tarek Ghoniem Abdel Metaal, Chairman of the Egyptian Authority for Maritime Safety; Vice-Admiral Mostafa Ibrahim Amer, Chairman of the General Authority for Riverine Transport. 

AlHebsi said “We at Tasneef will fulfill our part of the deal in order to transfer knowledge and international expertise in the classification sector to the Arab world to form a supportive force that enhances opportunities for building an inclusive economy in the sector”.

AlHebsi also added “the delegation’s visit to Egypt was successful by all standards where ways of cooperation between the society and authorities that met the delegation were discussed which reflects the interest of the Egyptian government in Tasneef and its thoughtful efforts towards drawing plans and frames for joint cooperation between Egyptian maritime institutions and the society to achieve the desired integration between the two countries in this field in a step towards establishing a one Arab maritime industry”. 

The delegation’s visit to Egypt comes as an advanced step on the level of communication between the society and Arab governmental maritime authorities as these meetings are considered a supporting element for achieving the joint Arab vision launched decades ago to establish an Arab classification society and that was only achieved by the UAE’s initiative to establish Tasneef.

AlNahdi also commented “this visit has indeed established joint constants between the UAE and Egypt in terms of visions, ideas and future plans related to the maritime sector which reflects a true desire on the part of the Egyptian government that is highly regarded by Tasneef and we hope that joint efforts between the two countries can lead to maritime initiatives capable of developing the necessary plans for a better Arab maritime reality”.