May 25, 2022 — The Maritime and Port Bureau (MPB) was successfully verified by DNV GL Business Assurance Co., Ltd. (DNV) and became ISO 9001 certified today (29th). Mr. Zhu Zhu-Shu, Vice President of DNV’s Certification Department, arrived at the MPB at 9:00 AM to complete the certification ceremony. The certification was received by Director-General Yeh Hsieh-Lung of the MPB in person. According to the MPB, to ensure effective implementation of international maritime regulations in Taiwan, the mechanism for monitoring and evaluating effectiveness has been established while the ISO 9001 Quality Management System (QMS) has been implemented as suggested by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The MPB has adopted a holistic strategy and developed a systematic management document for the maritime management system. The third-party verification of ISO 9001, organized for the first time in late 2021, has laid the foundation for the subsequent promotion of the IMO Instruments Implementation Code (III CODE) audits.

The IMO promotes the effective and uniform implementation of international conventions for safety at sea and for the protection of the marine environment by assigning III CODE auditors to conduct on-site audits to facilitate member states to fulfill their good maritime management responsibilities. Despite not being a member state, Taiwan still actively promotes III CODE audits to comply with the requirements of international conventions, in the hopes of further improving the country’s maritime management and enhancing the competitiveness of Taiwan’s marine shipping development.

According to Mr. Yeh Hsieh-Lung, Director-General of the MPB, the IMO encourages member states to refer to ISO 9001 QMS and self-examine the compliant capacity of their maritime management to ensure that they can provide sound and comprehensive services in areas such as domestic legislation and law enforcement, vessel management, seafarer training, maritime investigation, pollution prevention, radio communications, meteorological services, search and rescue, route planning, and port and navigational aids, as well as fulfilling the requirements of the international conventions. The MPB chose to be certified by DNV, a renowned marine surveyor, mainly based on DNV’s international status in maritime management verification. The smooth verification process has demonstrated the MPB’s determination and preparation.

The MPB noted that it would continue to promote ISO 9001 QMS and organize III CODE audits in October, 2022, hoping to proactively showcase the effectiveness of maritime transport in Taiwan to the world, and to ensure that the national maritime management systems align perfectly with international standards.