The overhaul of South Africa’s shipping legislation is making slow progress with the long overdue redraft of the Merchant Shipping Act still before Parliament.
One of the most contentious proposals involves the issue of cabotage and while it’s nothing new, the prospect of introducing it as law in South Africa has raised questions.
Effectively it restricts the carriage of coastal cargo to SA-registered vessels – which, practically speaking, is a non-starter. The Bill was submitted in March this year and it’s unclear when the newly drafted Bill will reach promulgation stage. Earlier last month the Portfolio Committee on Transport referred the Bill to the National Assembly without amendment for consideration.
According to Malcolm Hartwell, a master mariner and director at Norton Rose Fulbright, while the redraft of the Bill happened relatively quickly, at least 25 sets of regulations to support the Bill are still outstanding.
“There is no indication when these regulations will be available and, until they are, this Bill simply cannot be promulgated,” he said.
To read the full article, and other stories from FTW, click here.
