The Norwegian Maritime Authority ( no, Sjøfartsdirektoratet) is a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

government agency responsible for

life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...

health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

, working conditions and the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

for Norwegian registered

ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...

s and ships at Norwegian

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

s. The authority, subordinate to the

Norwegian Ministry of Trade and Industry The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Trade and Industry ( Norwegian: Nærings- og handelsdepartementet) was a Norwegian ministry responsible for business, trade and industry. On 1 January 2014 it was merged into Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheri ...

, is located in

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipality on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. While the population is greater in the neighboring Karmøy municipality, the main commercial and economic centre of the Haugaland region in northern Rogaland and southern ...

and led by Director General of Shipping and Navigation

Olav Akselsen Olav Akselsen (28 August 1965 – 17 August 2021) was a Norwegian politician, who served six terms in the Norwegian Parliament for the Norwegian Labour Party, and was Minister of Petroleum and Energy in the first cabinet Stoltenberg from 2000 ...

. The main job for the authority is to ensure that Norwegian ships and

shipping companies The following articles list companies that operate ships: * List of freight ship companies for companies that own and operate the freight ships (Bulk Carriers, Container Ships, Roll-on/Roll-off (for Freights), Tankers and Gas Carriers). ** List o ...

meet high safety- and environmental standards, to ensure that Norwegian seamen have high qualifications and good working- and living conditions, and to ensure that foreign ships in Norwegian

territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...

and ports meet international rules. The authority also assists the Norwegian Petroleum Safety Authority in matters concerning petroleum activities and also has responsibilities concerning small boats.Sjøfartsdirektoratet

regjeringen.no Government.no ( no, Regjeringen.no, se, Ráđđehus.no) is the web portal for the Government of Norway. Operated by the Government Administration Services Norwegian Government Security and Service Organisation (G.S.S.O) ( no, Departementene ...

, retrieved 5 May 2013 In matters concerning

environmental quality "Environmental Quality" is a set of properties and characteristics of the environment, either generalized or local, as they impinge on human beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an environment relative to the requirements ...

, the authority is subordinate to the

Norwegian Ministry of the Environment The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment (Norwegian: Klima- og miljødepartementet) is a Norwegian ministry established on May 8, 1972. The Ministry of Climate and Environment has a particular responsibility for carrying out the cli ...

. In

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

- and

prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial ...

concerns it is subordinate of the Norwegian Director of Public Prosecutions. The Norwegian ship registry NIR / NOR belongs to the Authority and has its headquarter in

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

. The agency was established in 1962 in Oslo and moved to Haugesund in 2006 as part of a decentralization program for government agencies.

Directors

Rune Teisland left the director post in 2008. In August the same year,

, a parliament member at the time, was appointed new Director General. Akselsen did not take up the post until January 2010, and in the meantime Sigurd Gude served as acting director.

References

{{authority control Maritime Authority Maritime safety organizations Water transport in Norway Maritime transport authorities Organisations based in Haugesund