Mozambique: All vessels will be required to install tracking devices

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Mozambique: All vessels will be required to install tracking devices

12:41 CAT | 04 Dec 2023

FILE - Caption: Fishing boat on the high seas. [File photo: Ferhat Momade/AIM]

All marine vessels plying off the Mozambican coast will soon be required to carry an automatic location device, so that maritime authorities can identify their position in the event of accidents.

The device in question, to be installed on all types of vessels, will not only allow the location of boats, but also facilitate the issuing of alerts to vessels setting sail, in the event of changes in the weather.

According to ‘Notícias’, the decision was made by the National Institute of the Sea (INAMAR) and conveyed by the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Isaías Mondlane, during an institutional Technical Council in Marracuene, Maputo province, on Friday (01-12).

The measure is also justified by the increasing number of maritime accidents and incidents along the Mozambican coast.

For example, in the first half of this year alone, 143 maritime accidents and incidents were reported, resulting in more than 100 deaths and 27 persons missing.

Of the incidents, the highlight goes to drownings, with 57 cases, followed by wrecks, with more than 50 occurrences.

According to Isaías Mondlane, the idea is to install a simple and affordable device on all types of vessels, so that their whereabouts at sea are known in real time.

“We have more than 43,000 small vessels that do not have this system; only the larger vessels do. However, we are already working with some companies to supply the device to prevent accidents and fatalities at sea,” he said.

In another attempt to mitigate tragedies at sea, the institution is developing more decisive actions in cases of negligence in observing navigation rules.

Source: AIM