Koji Sekimizu (born 3 December 1952) is a Japanese official who was Secretary General of the

International Maritime Organization The International Maritime Organization (IMO, French: ''Organisation maritime internationale'') is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating shipping. The IMO was established following agreement at a UN conference ...

between 2012 and 2015, as well as Chancellor of the

World Maritime University The World Maritime University (WMU) in Malmö, Sweden, is a postgraduate maritime university founded within the framework of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a specialized agency of the United Nations. Established by an IMO Assem ...

Education

Sekimizu attended school in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

. He studied a Bachelor's degree in Engineering at

Osaka University , abbreviated as , is a public research university located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It is one of Japan's former Imperial Universities and a Designated National University listed as a "Top Type" university in the Top Global University Project. ...

and then obtained a Master's degree in Engineering from Osaka University in 1977.

Early career

In 1977, he was appointed at a ship inspectior for the

Ministry of Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government age ...

in Japan. In 1979, he became responsible for IMO safety planning regulations at the Ministry of Transport Ship Bureau. In 1980, he began attending meetings at the IMO in London. He eventually rose to become Deputy Director of Maritime Safety Standards in 1986. In 1989, Sekimizu joined the IMO as a technical officer. In 1992, he became Head of Technology in the Maritime Safety Division. In 1997, he became the Senior Deputy Director of the Maritime Environment Division. In 2004, he was appointed as the Director of the Maritime Safety Division at the IMO.

Secretary-General of the IMO

On 28 June 2011, he was elected Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization. This appointment was confirmed on 1 December 2011 and he became the eighth Secretary-General of the IMO. He began his term as Secretary-General on 1 January 2012. In July 2012, in response to the

Costa Concordia disaster On 13 January 2012, the eight-year-old Costa Cruises vessel ''Costa Concordia'' was on the last leg of a cruise around the Mediterranean Sea when she deviated from her planned route at Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, sailed closer to the island, an ...

, he stated that the IMO needed to ''seriously consider the lessons to be learnt rom the accidentand, if necessary, re-reexamine the requirements on the safety of large passenger ships.'' In September 2012, he argued for enhanced safety regulations for passenger shipping in the maritime industry. In June 2013, in Oslo, he advised audiences of the IMO development of the Polar Code. In 2015, he stated clearly that the IMO must help prevent migrants from being sent to unsafe ports, specifically in the Mediterranean. In 2015, Sekimizu also said that shippers should not be responsible for capping their environmental emissions. In April 2015, he welcomed

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...

as the newest IMO member State. Seikimizu served as Secretary-General until 31 December 2015. He was succeeded on 1 January 2016 by Kitack Lim. On his retirement from the IMO at the end of 2015, he was the last Japanese official to lead a UN specialised agency until the appointment of Masahiko Metoki to the

Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union (UPU, french: link=no, Union postale universelle), established by the Treaty of Bern of 1874, is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to t ...

in 2022. In 2016, following his retirement he received the International Maritime Prize for his contributions at IMO.

Personal life

He is married, with a daughter, son and two grand-daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sekimizu, Koji Living people International Maritime Organization people Japanese officials of the United Nations 1952 births