26 Sep 13 - 14:01
Understanding the threats is key to keeping trade flowing
Typecasting can be the curse of many an actor - they become so immersed and associated with one kind of character that the wider audience cannot seemingly accept them in any other role. Away from the bright lights of the film studios, it seems that entire industries can be typecast too - and private maritime security may be suffering just such a problem.
It appears the maritime security industry and armed guards have become completely synonymous. A perception is seemingly developing which sees privately contracted armed security personnel (PCASP) as the only answer being offered by this burgeoning industry.
Their use has been contentious and has led to difficult decisions within in many a parliament and many a shipowner's Board room, but their usage has added security and a degree of confidence where once there was only fear and uncertainty.
The much quoted fact that no vessel, to date, with armed guards on board has been hijacked is a compelling selling point. While it is true that armed guards have been a popular, successful and widely used service, the fact remains that this is simply one small aspect of the capabilities which maritime security can bring to bear. Armed guards are simply a specific form of protection and deterrent against a specific threat - namely Somali pirates.
That is why SAMI is eager to look ahead to the future of maritime security and break the cycle of misunderstanding and show that where security threats are set to emerge it is by embracing professional solutions at an early stage which will allow seafarers, cargoes, vessels and global trade to remain protected.
Protecting vessels and understanding the threats facing them is key to keeping trade flowing. Just as the Earth's rotation is the engine which drives our climate, the need to move goods from different parts of the world is the driving force behind the shipping industry. The fundamental fact that so much of the world's resources or means of manufacture are found far from the ultimate consumers means that globalisation has rested on the ability for shipping to make the movement of goods and raw materials a reality.
This poses a degree of risk for the seafarers and vessels making these potentially dangerous voyages. Since time immemorial those who go down to the sea in ships have been vulnerable to not just the vagaries of the weather and seas, but to other threats too. The vicious nature of criminals, terrorists and the fact that ships are inherently exposed as they plough their lonely furrow across the oceans cannot be underestimated or ignored.
So what of the future? In assessing how maritime security will provide the right services and solutions it is perhaps important to appreciate how trade may evolve. So what will ships be doing into the next decade and beyond?
Issues such as the quest for alternative energy supplies, and developments such as lab grown meat will likely have some impact on the movement of goods, materials and hydrocarbon products. However, where the flow of trade may incur so many ton-miles, it could be that the next generation of shipping is focused on exploitation of the seas. We will look to work under the waves, while possibly living and working above it.
In order to safeguard the vast investments needed to make the future moves out from the coast possible, it will be vital to ensure that the people and vessels used are not just properly constructed and operated, but they need to be secure too. Safety and security should not be separated. The risk management approach which has proved so popular within the corridors of shipping power has to be applied equally to all threats and opportunities.
According to the Global Ocean Commission, there is growing evidence that governance failures in international waters are having an impact on economics, food supplies, piracy, security and human rights, as well as on nature. It would therefore seem that security will play a vital role in safeguarding the rights of parties looking to legally and sustainably manage activities out on the high seas.
While it would perhaps seem that this is the role of navies, it has been increasingly seen that where private, commercial entities are involved, then governments are hesitant to commit to the expensive task of providing naval support. Given the delicate balance of rebuilding global finance and government coffers it perhaps seems unlikely that the public purse will be widely opened for the pursuit of private gain. While the naval assets which have gathered off Somalia and in the Indian Ocean may suggest otherwise, for many politicians it seems that maritime activities are not yet vote winners and as far as the electorate is concerned shipping is literally out of sight and mind.
