Jamaica is backing a pledge by the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to half the number of lives lost at sea by 2015. Mr. Koji Sekimizu has made reducing maritime casualties a key aim of his term of office. IMO figures put the number of lives lost at sea in 2012 at approximately 1,000, including 500 in international shipping. Rear Admiral Peter Brady, Director General of the Maritime Authority of Jamaica, said, “We fully endorse the Secretary General’s aims and will do all we can to assist him to achieve his target.