“Any Administration that thinks it can delegate all functions to Classification Societies and does not require any technical expertise, lives in a fools’ paradise,” was the clear message given last week in Malmö, Sweden by Capt. Fazlur R. Chowdhury, Deputy Director for Maritime Affairs, Bahamas Maritime Authority. Malmö’s World Maritime University (WMU) seminar on Flag State Audit placed a special emphasis on smaller maritime states. The seminar attracted representatives of the maritime administrations of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Luxembourg, Madeira, Malta India, and Sweden, several academics, and representatives of BIMCO, the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), INTERTANKO, IMO, plus of course a large number of eager WMU students.
