The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has presented its global initiative for World Maritime Day 2026-2027 with an institutional message recorded at the port of Algeciras, where the organization's secretary-general, Arsenio Domínguez, positioned the Algeciras port as the stage for the global call to bridge the gap between the standards adopted by member States and their effective implementation in ships and ports around the world. The video was filmed during Domínguez's visit at the end of January last year, accompanied by the Algeciras native Victor Jiménez, the current president of the IMO Council.
The slogan chosen for the next two years, "From Policy to Practice: Promoting Maritime Excellence," underpins a campaign with which the IMO aims to ensure that the regulatory framework built over nearly eight decades — more than 50 international conventions that shape everyday maritime activity — does not remain merely formal commitments, but translates into verifiable results. Domínguez pointed out that the true value of these normative instruments is only realized when they are effectively applied and generate practical benefits on board ships, in ports, and throughout the maritime domain, and that the true responsibility lies in the implementation phase.
The head of the IMO emphasized that talking about practice is equivalent to talking about people: the seafarers onboard, the port workers, the ship operations managers, the naval recycling workers, the inspectors of the port State control, and the flag administrations. Domínguez mentioned that he had just met with several of these professionals at the port of Algeciras and insisted that to achieve a truly sustainable maritime sector, it is necessary for the standards to be applied in all ports and on all decks, globally, coherently, and without inequalities.
The campaign arises after identifying, through the audits of the IMO Member States Audit Plan (IMSAS), the existence of gaps in national legislation and its implementation in some countries, a situation that weakens the regulations, increases the risk of non-compliance, and can lead to unsafe navigation. To address this issue, the initiative aims to help member States deepen their understanding of the IMO conventions and strengthen their capacity to adopt and enforce them.
The action plan, which will be developed over two years and will include events, outreach activities, partnership programs, and knowledge products, will be structured around nine strategic pillars. The first focuses on capacity development and technical cooperation, with legislative support, enforcement frameworks, and training so that countries can implement IMO standards. The second pillar will pay special attention to small island developing States (SIDS) and least developed countries (LDCs), providing legal assistance and technical support tailored to their specific needs.
The third axis addresses safety through innovation, aiming to translate new standards on fuels, automation, and digitalization into operational practice through updated training, supervision, and risk management. The fourth pillar is oriented towards regulatory preparation for decarbonization, equipping States to safely and coherently apply the IMO Strategy on reducing greenhouse gas emissions with operational realities.
The fight against fraudulent ship registration and maritime fraud constitutes the fifth axis, focused on developing practical guidance and strengthening due diligence, transparency, and data sharing. The sixth pillar proposes using the conclusions of the IMSAS audits as a basis to address legal gaps, prioritize reforms, and improve ongoing oversight.
The remaining three pillars encompass facilitation, digitalization, and resilience of port operations, incorporating digital systems such as single maritime windows; integrating cybersecurity into safety management systems and port operations; and protecting the oceans through the application of IMO environmental instruments related to plastics, underwater noise, invasive species, and ship recycling.
The IMO Secretariat has encouraged member States and observer organizations to organize events and activities throughout the period 2026-2027 and to share their results on social media with the hashtags #WorldMaritimeDay and #MaritimePolicytoPractice.
Domínguez concluded his remarks with a call for decisions made at international forums to translate into tangible results that benefit all actors in the maritime chain, stating that it is time to decisively move from policy to practice. The choice of the port of Algeciras as the setting for the institutional message positions one of the main logistical nodes of the Mediterranean as the starting point for an initiative that aims to elevate regulatory application standards on a global scale.