Monday 25/November/2024 – 07:47 PM
Counselor Mahmoud Fawzi, Minister of Parliamentary Legal Affairs and Political Communication, participated in the plenary session For the SenateToday, November 25, headed by Counselor Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razek, President of the Senate.
The Senate approves two draft laws on ship registration and maritime trade
The Senate discussed the report of the joint committee from the Housing, Local Administration and Transport Committee and the Office of the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee on a draft law submitted by the government amending some provisions of Law No. 84 of 1949 regarding the registration of commercial ships, and the draft law was finally approved as received from the committee, and also approved The draft law submitted by the government amending some provisions of the Maritime Trade Law promulgated by Law No. 8 of 1990.
Counselor Mahmoud Fawzi said that the proposed amendments to the laws on maritime ships and maritime trade represent great importance, as they reflect the development of the maritime system witnessed far and wide, with unprecedented support from the political leadership and under the leadership of the entire minister’s team for the transport sector, and the real efforts being made to develop This is a vital sector, and the one primarily concerned with maritime activity is the private sector, and the role of the state is to try to remove obstacles, and the primary goal of the amendments is to enhance the size of the commercial maritime fleet, since it relies on foreign ship transportation and activity. Registration, and approaching these legal texts that have not undergone any amendments for decades, is a desire to enhance maritime trade and a step on the way to boosting investment.
Counselor Mahmoud Fawzi spoke about the draft Commercial Ship Registration Law No. 84 of 1949, and that it aims to organize ship records by requiring owners to report any changes that occur to them, such as their destruction or the suspension of the flag, while expanding the granting of Egyptian nationality to ships and enabling them to fly the flag. Egyptian through bare or financial leasing systems. The project also includes tightening the penalties to make them more deterrent, in proportion to the change in the value of the currency, in addition to clarifying the procedures for raising the Egyptian flag on chartered ships.
The aim of the draft Maritime Trade Law No. 8 of 1990 is to enhance the size of the Egyptian commercial maritime fleet, expand the reasons for acquiring Egyptian nationality for ships, allowing for the increase of the Egyptian tax on them, and not limit ownership as the sole reason, and reduce dependence on foreign exchange to pay for ship operating activities and reduce Fees, depending on the size of the load, and setting a maximum fee to increase competitiveness
Fawzi pointed out that a country like Panama, for example, is currently transporting a quarter of the global maritime transport tonnage through a fleet of about 7,100 ships, in addition to the dependence of the economies of countries like Liberia and Singapore on maritime transport, and the success of those countries is due to three main factors: giving Facilitating ship registration, providing attractive tax incentives, and providing low-cost labor, which prompted the government to amend the ship ownership requirement in the law, by introducing bare lease and financial lease systems. He stressed that these successful experiences represent a model that can be His inspiration, especially since Egypt possesses the capabilities that qualify it to achieve similar successes in this field.
