APEC Transportation Working Group Project
 DRAFT REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
 Safer Shipping in the Asia Pacific Region

• an integrated approach to developing appropriate regulatory and economic mechanisms to promote safer shipping in the Asia Pacific region.

Phase I

 SUMMARY

This Request for Proposal provides information on Phase I of the project ‘Safer Shipping in the APEC Region’.

The project is consistent with IMO and flag state objectives to promote maritime safety. Phase I of the project will investigate the legislative, economic, or commercial arrangements within government maritime safety agencies, shipping and related organisations that mitigate against sub-standard shipping and encourage the use of safe shipping.

The main elements of the whole project are:

• Identifying the legislative, economic, or commercial mechanisms that can be used in APEC economies to encourage all players in the international maritime industry to support a safety culture.
• To be completed in 1999.

Phase II

• Facilitating the implementation of the identified mechanisms in APEC economies in a coordinated effort to further progress safer shipping.

• Phase II will be the subject of a separate future RFP.

The funds for Phase 1 of the project are provided by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperative (APEC) forum through the APEC Transportation Working Group (TPT-WG). The project will to be guided by the Project Overseer who will report to the Project Steering Committee, the APEC Transportation Working Group and the APEC Secretariat. Interested parties should contact officers from APEC economies as listed at Annex B for further information.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of Phase I of the project are to:

• Identify existing mechanisms or practices used by APEC governments and maritime industries to improve the safety of shipping in the region;
• To consider the effectiveness of the mechanisms identified; and
• To recognise innovative practices used within organisations to combat the incidence of sub-standard shipping in the region.

 INTRODUCTION

The use of unsafe and sub-standard shipping risks the integrity of the marine environment, the welfare of seafarers, the reliability of services and cargo carried. Through its Experts Group on Maritime Safety, the APEC Transportation Working Group will aim to develop a cooperative approach to promote effective maritime safety policies and practices in the Asia Pacific.

Phase I of the Safer Shipping project should determine whether mechanisms exist in government maritime safety agencies, shipping and related organisations to minimise the use of sub-standard shipping. For this project the use of the term "mechanisms" means decisions, policies or practices which guide the organisation’s approach to maritime safety.

To identify practical mechanisms used to minimise substandard shipping the contractor will be required to consult closely with businesses associated with the shipping industry. Specifically, the contractor should consult with government maritime safety agencies, ship owners, shippers, classification societies, marine insurers and other financial institutions that may influence ship safety.

PROJECT CONTEXT

Phase 1 of the ‘Safer Shipping in the APEC Region’ project was endorsed by the 13^th meeting of the APEC Transportation Working Group in April 1998. The project recognises that the use of sub-standard shipping creates an unfair competitive advantage for those operators who are able, or willing to circumvent international maritime safety standards. Phase I meets the primary APEC objectives of trade facilitation and liberalisation recognising that all economies should have equal access to economic development.

Phase I should be completed during 1999. Phase 2 will have three elements to combat the incidence of sub-standard shipping. These will include developing new mechanisms, recommending their use and proposing a method for their implementation among APEC economies.

The OECD Maritime Transport Committee has undertaken research on the substantial unfair competitive advantage gained by using sub-standard shipping and is undertaking a complementary program of work to identify commercial measures and policy initiatives intended to address the problem of sub-standard shipping.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

In 1997 Transportation Ministers from APEC economies urged the APEC Transportation Working Group, among other issues, to develop programs and mechanisms to promote the implementation of, and compliance with, existing international rules and standards adopted by organisations such as the IMO. This direction is consistent with APEC objectives particularly those contained within the 1995 ‘APEC Osaka Action Agenda’ and the 1996 ‘Ministerial Declaration on an APEC Framework for Strengthening Economic Cooperation and Development’. These documents and other background information on APEC can be found on the internet at http://www.apecsec.org.sg.

The project process and outcomes will be complementary to, and not duplicate, existing port State control programs or the role of flag State administration. An understanding of the principles and goals of APEC are essential for the successful completion of Phase I. Phase I must provide for a balanced approach recognising that ship safety mechanisms are employed by both industrialised and developing economies according to resource constraints.

DUTIES OF CONTRACTOR

The structure and responsibilities of the shipping industry players vary considerably among APEC economies.

The following describes the elements which may be used by the contractor in completing Phase I. However, this project methodology should not be considered prescriptive. The methodology submitted by the contractor should reflect their experience and understanding of the shipping industry and the objectives of international maritime safety.

The contractor should provide regular reports on progress of the project to the project overseer as noted on the project timing

Phase 1 comprises a data gathering, analysis and dissemination stage. The contractor will be required to undertake the following tasks:

Research

1. analysis of complementary work undertaken by other international bodies, including;

• OECD,
• IMO,
• Port State Control Secretariats for Latin America, Europe and the Asia Pacific, and
• Asia Pacific Heads of Maritime Safety Agencies Forum.

2. a description and statistics of the incidence and effect of sub-standard shipping in the region

3. a scoping or feasibility analysis to identify relevant parties in the industry, and their roles

4. Based on this analysis, identify existing mechanisms or practices used by APEC government authorities and maritime industry players to improve the safety of shipping in the region

5. Obtain information from economies and relevant international bodies, such as the IMO and the OECD Maritime Transport Committee,

6. To give adequate attention to the role of industry players the planning and development of Phase I is a critical component of the project. It is important that the contractor undertakes to interview members of the maritime industry including financiers, insurers, ship owners, ship operators and charterers from a number of countries so that Phase I of the project is relevant to practices in all economies. The contractor should take into account the following issues:

• existing mechanisms (legislative/commercial/ economic) used by governments and industry to promote safe shipping;
• existing mechanisms (legislative and/or economic) used by governments and industry to identify and deter sub-standard shippers;
• how the mechanisms are funded ie. Tax or cost recovery;
• whether these mechanisms are seen as effective
• the organisations’ policy on ship safety (discrimination between safe shipping and sub-standard shipping)
• the type of ship safety information used by the organisation
• the importance of vessel safety information
• the role of risk assessment in ship safety.

Collation and Analysis

7. Collate and analyse information received

8. Identify those mechanisms which have been found to be most effective in achieving ship safety

9. Identify the reasons why those mechanisms have been effective

10. Submit report of findings to Project Steering Committee

Report

11. Produce a draft report of the results of Phase I of the project for consideration by Project Steering committee.

12. Produce a final report for submission to APEC members for consideration at TPT-WG 16, September 1999

13. Distribute final report to relevant international organisations

The Contractor should complete these tasks in accordance with the timetable outlined below. The draft report shall be submitted to the project officer who will arrange for it to be placed on the web site for consideration and comment by APEC economies. The final report will be considered by TPT-WG 16 in September 1999.

 PROJECT STEERING COMMITTEE

Phase I of the Safer Shipping in the APEC region will be overseen by a Project Steering Committee. The Steering Committee comprises representatives from Australia, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Korea………. [to be completed at TPT WG 14].

 TIMING

In completing Phase I the Contractor should be guided by the following timetable:

PROPOSAL

Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

• Methodology
• Experience
• Knowledge of APEC objectives
• Understanding of project objectives
• Understanding of safe shipping practices within the commercial environment.

In order to meet this criteria tenderers should therefore include details of the following:

• Methodology – an explanation of how the tenderer proposes to meet the project objectives by demonstrating an understanding of safer shipping practices in a commercial environment. The methodology will also be evaluated according to attention to detail, creativity, and the degree of innovation demonstrated in the proposal.
• Qualifications and relevant experience of project team including availability of replacements.
• Project management experience relevant to this project with references if appropriate.
• Time line – details of activities to be undertaken in accordance with the timeframe outlined above.
• Proposed project expenditure – itemised and value for money.

LODGEMENT OF PROPOSAL

The proposal must be lodged in accordance with the guidelines set out in Annex A.

1. APEC economies to request proposals on 21 November, 1998
2. Proposals to be submitted to economy contact officers (see attached list) by 21 December 1998.
3. Notify tenderer by 19 February 1998.
4. Sign Contract and commence Phase I by first week in March 1999

BUDGET

The funds allocated by the APEC Secretariat for the completion of this project are US$83, 500. Proposals submitted for completion of this project should not exceed this amount.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

The management of this project will be conducted by a Project Steering Committee comprising of representatives from Australia, Korea and Canada. The project overseer is:

Ms Joanne Blackburn
Deputy Group Manager
Maritime Transport Group
Department of Workplace Relations and Small Business, Australia.

Postal Address:

GPO Box 9879
Canberra City
ACT 2601
AUSTRALIA
E-mail: Jblackburn@dwrsb.gov.au
Tel No: 61 2 6274 7982
Fax No:      61 2 6274 7744

CONTACT POINTS

This page was last updated on 12 March, 2008