Port St. Maarten to discuss rebound and experiences at Caribbean Port Management Workshop

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FILE PHOTO: Cargo operations underway at Port St. Maarten post-Hurricane Irma.

 

PORT ST. MAARTEN – Port St. Maarten Management and Operations representatives will be attending the three-day Caribbean Port Management Workshop, organized and presented by the Port Management Association of the Caribbean (PMAC).

The three-day event is taking place in Panama from January 22-24, and it is bringing together regional maritime sector representatives who will be discussing the type and nature of last year’s destruction caused by several major hurricanes, and what technologies, systems and networks are now necessary to deal with future hurricanes.

Also part of the organization of the workshop is Portside Caribbean and the Caribbean Maritime University. The Panama Manzanillo International Terminal (MIT) is hosting the workshop that will be held at the Sheraton Grand Hotel.

The workshop provides an early opportunity to analyze and initiate plans and strategies ahead of 2018’s Hurricane Season.

Port St. Maarten along with other representatives will share their experiences regarding the type and nature of port infrastructure damage and how defensive systems performed or failed under the onslaught of 2017’s mega-hurricanes to cruise ports and cargo terminals that were recently affected by destruction of land and port assets.

PMAC founding started with an inaugural meeting in Antigua on 26 June, 1998, having succeeded the Port Management Association of the Eastern Caribbean established on 16 May, 1988.

The main objective of PMAC is to improve the proficiency of member ports and the quality of services offered to their users, specifically through the facilitation of relevant training designed to maximize human resources, and effectively meet the ever increasing challenges of the global environment.

Moreover, amidst developments within the maritime industry, the Association strives to remain relevant by providing critical services to members, which entail the sharing of experience, information and ideas, as well as advocacy and representation at multilateral levels.

PMAC’s mission is to foster operational and financial efficiency, and to enhance the level of service to the mutual benefit of Caribbean Ports and their stakeholders, through the sharing of experience, training, information and ideas.

Current membership includes port organizations from the following islands, Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Saint Martin, French Guyane, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, Cayman Islands, Sint Maarten, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Turks and Caicos Islands.  There are also a number of associate members.