GUIDE TO SHIP

SANITATION
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
INTRODUCTION
 Historically,ships have played a significant
role in the global transmission of infectious
disease. Some of the earliest recorded evidence
of attempts to control human disease
transmission via ships dates to the
14thcentury, when ports denied access to ships
suspected of carrying the plague.
 In the 19th century, the spread of cholera
pandemics was thought to have been facilitated
by merchant shipping. A World Health
Organization (WHO) review identified more
than 100 disease outbreaks associated with
ships between 1970 and 2003.
 Because of the international nature of ship transport,
international regulations relating to sanitary aspects
of ship transport have been in place for more than half
a century. The International Sanitary Regulations of
1951 were replaced by the International Health
Regulations (IHR)adopted by WHO in 1969. The IHR
were revised at the Fifty-eighth World Health
Assembly in 2005.
 The WHO Guide to ship sanitation has become the
official WHO global reference on health requirements
for ship construction and operation.
 Its original purpose was to standardize the sanitary
measures taken in ships, to safeguard the health of
travelers and workers and to prevent the spread of
infection from one country to another.
 The Guide to ship sanitation and the
International medical guide for ships(WHO,
2007) are companion volumes oriented towards
preventive health and curative health,
respectively, on board ships.
 From a public health perspective, the focus should be
on proactive and preventive measures rather than
reactive and curative. For example:
o the design and construction of the ship should be as
failsafe as possible with respect to maintaining a
sanitary environment;
the food, water and materials taken on board should
be as safe as possible;
o crew should be well trained in ship sanitation and
have all the equipment, facilities, materials and
capacity necessary to permit the maintenance of a
sanitary environment on board;
o a risk management system should be put in place and
maintained to ensure the identification, reporting and
mitigation of public health risks.
 The Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) is
an International Labour Organization convention
established in 2006 as the Fourth pillar of
international maritime law and embodies " all up-to-
date standards of existing international maritime
labour Conventions and Recommendations, as well as
the fundamental principles to be found in other
international labour Conventions".[3] The other
"pillars are the SOLAS, STCW and MARPOL.
 As of February 2013, the convention was ratified by
39 states representing 68% of global shipping. Entry
into force required 30 ratifications of countries
representing over 33% of the world gross tonnage of
ships and will take effect on 20 August 2013,[1] 1 year
after the thirtieth ratification. Already after five
ratifications the ratifying countries (Bahamas,
Norway, Liberia, Marshall Islands and Panama)
represented over 43% of the gross world
tonnage[4](which is over 33%; the second requirement
for entry into force).
 Contents
 1 Content and Organization
 1.1 Title 1: Minimum requirements for
seafarers to work on a ship
 1.2 Title 2: Employment conditions
 1.3 Title 3: Accommodation, Recreational
Facilities, Food and Catering
 1.4 Title 4: Health Protection, Medical Care,
Welfare and Social Security Protection
 1.5 Title 5: Compliance and Enforcement
 2 Negotiations
 3 Ratifications
 4 Effect on other conventions
 5 References
 6 External links
 Title 1: Minimum requirements for seafarers to
work on a ship

 The minimum requirements set out in this section of

the code are divided in 4 parts and are summarized
below:
 Minimum age requirements: the mimimum age is 16
years (18 for night work and work in hazardous
areas).
 Medical fitness: workers should be medically fit for
the duties they are performing. Countries should
issue medical certificates as defined in the STCW (or
use a similar standard).
 Training: Seafarers should be trained for their duties
as well as have had a personal safety training.
 Recruitment/placement services located in member
states or for ships flying the flag of member states
should have (amongst others) proper placement
procedures, registration, complaint procedures and
 Title 2: Employment conditions

 The Title on employment conditions lists conditions of the

contract and payments, as well as the working conditions on
ships.
 Contracts: the contract should be clear, legally enforceable and
incorporate collective bargaining agreements (if existent).
 Payments: Wages should be paid at least every month, and
should be transferrable regularly to family if so desired.
 Rest hours: rest hours should be implemented in national
legislation. The maximum hours of work in that legislation
should not exceed 14 hours in any 24-hour period and 72
hours in any seven-day period, or: ten hours rest in any 24-
hour period and 77 hours in any seven-day period.
Furthermore every day, at least six hours of rest should be
given consecutively.
 Leave: Seafarers have a right to annual leave as well as shore
leave.
 Repatriation: Returning to their country of residence should
be free
 Loss: If a ship is lost or foundered, the seafarers have a right
to an unemployment payments.
 Manning: Every ship should have a sufficient manning level
 Title 3: Accommodation, Recreational
Facilities, Food and Catering

 The title specifies rules detailed rules for

accommodation and recreational facilities, as well
as food and catering.
 Accommodation: Accommodation for living and/or
working should be "promoting the seafarers'
health and well-being". Detailed provisions (in
rules and guidelines) give minimum
requirements for various types of rooms (mess
rooms, recreational rooms, dorms etc.).
 Food and Catering: Both food quality and
quantity, including water should be regulated in
the flag state. Furthermore, cooks should have
proper training.
 Title 4: Health Protection, Medical Care, Welfare and Social
Security Protection

 Title 4 consists of 5 regulations about Health, Liability, Medical care,

Welfare and Social security.
 Medical care on board ship and ashore: Seafarers should be covered
for and have access to medical care while on board; in principle at no
cost and of a quality comparable to the standards of health care on
shore. Countries through which territory a ship is passing should
guarantee treatment on shore in serious cases.
 Shipowners' liability: Seafarers should be protected from the financial
effects of "sickness, injury or death occurring in connection with their
employment". This includes at least 16 weeks of payment of wages
after start of sickness.
 Health and safety protection and accident prevention: A safe and
hygienic environment should be provided to seafarers both during
working and resting hours and measures should be taken to take
reasonable safety measures.
 Access to shore-based welfare facilities: Port states should provide
"welfare, cultural, recreational and information facilities and
services" and to provide easy access to these services. The access to
these facilities should be open to all seafarers irrespective of race, sex,
religion or political opinion.
 Social security: Social security coverage should be available to
seafarers (and in case it is customary in the flag state: their
relatives).
 Title 5: Compliance and Enforcement

 Title 5 sets standers to ensure compliance with the convention. The

title distinguishes requirements for flag states and port states.
 Flag states: Flag states (the state under which flag the ship
operates) are responsible for ensuring implementation of the rules
on the ships that fly its flag. Detailed inspections result in the issue
of a "Certificate of Maritime Compliance", which should always be
present (and valid) on a ship. Ships are required to have decent
complaints procedures in place for its crew and should institute
investigations in case of casualties.
 Port States: The inspection in ports depends on whether a
Certificate of Maritime Compliance is present (and thus a flag is
flown of a country which has ratified the convention). If the
Certificate is present, compliance is to be assumed in principle, and
further investigations only take place if the certificate is not in
order or there are indications of non-compliance. For ships that
don't have the certificate, inspections are much more detailed and
should ensure -according to a "no more favorable treatment
principle"[5] that the ship has complied with the provisions of the
convention. The convention is thus -indirectly- also valid for ships of
non-member countries if they plan to call to ports of a member
state.
 Labour agencies: Agencies supplying on maritime workers to ships
should also be inspected to ensure that they apply the convention
(amongst others the regulations regarding to social security).
 The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC,
2006)

 is now in effect as of August 20, 2013.

MLC, 2006 certificates are required for all ships
of 500 gross tonnage or over, engaged in
international voyages or flying the flag of a
member country and operating from a port, or
between ports, in another country. Ships below
500 gross tonnage flying the flag of a member
country simply require inspection. Ships from
non-ratifying states will no longer enjoy more
favourable treatment ensuring inspections for
compliance on such ships.
 Maritime Labour Convention, 2006
 The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, adopted
by the 94th (Maritime)Session of the
International Labour Conference, the main body
of the ILO,consolidates more than 60 existing
ILO maritime labour standards, adopted by the
ILO since 1919, several of which address issues
relevant to health on board ships. Article IV,
Seafarers’ Employment and Social Rights, of
theMaritime Labour Convention, 2006.
 Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 provides, in
paragraph 3, that “Every seafarer has a right to
decent working and living conditions on board
ship” and, in paragraph 4, that “Every seafarer
has a right to health protection , medical care,
welfare measures and other forms of social
protection”. The following regulations of the
convention specifically address health issues:
 Regulation 1.2: Medical certificate, paragraph 1,
provides that “Seafarers shall not work on a ship
unless they are certified as medically fit to
perform their duties”. The related mandatory
standard sets out the requirements related to the
medical examination of seafarers and the issuing
of a medical certificate attesting that they are
medically fit to perform the duties they are to
carry out at sea.
 Regulation 3.1: Accommodation and recreational
facilities, paragraph1, provides that “Each Member shall
ensure that ships that fly its flag provide and maintain
decent accommodations and recreational facilities for
seafarers working or living on board, or both, consistent
with promoting the seafarers’ health and well-being”. It
sets out specific requirements concerning the size of
rooms and other accommodation spaces, heating and
ventilation, noise and vibration, sanitary facilities,
lighting and hospital accommodation. Standard A3.1,
paragraph 18, provides that “The competent authority
shall require frequent inspections to be carried out on
board ships, by or under the authority of the master, to
ensure that seafarer accommodation is clean, decently
habitable and maintained in a good state of repair. The
results of each such inspection shall be recorded and be
available for review”.
 Regulation 3.2: Food and catering, paragraph 1,
provides that “Each Member shall ensure that ships
that fly its flag carry on board and serve food and
drinking water of appropriate quality, nutritional
value and quantity that adequately covers the
requirements of the ship and takes into account the
differing cultural and religious backgrounds”.
Standard A3.2 provides, inter alia, that “Each Member
shall ensure that ships that fly its flag meet the
following minimum standards: … (b) the organization
and equipment of the catering department shall be
such as to permit the provision to the seafarers of
adequate, varied and nutritious meals prepared and
served in hygienic conditions; and (c) catering staff
shall be properly trained or instructed for their
positions”. There are further requirements and
guidance related to proper food handling and hygiene.
 Regulation 4.1: Medical care on board ship and ashore
provides, in paragraph 1, that “Each Member shall
ensure that all seafarers on ships that fly its flag are
covered by adequate measures for the protection of
their health and that they have access to prompt and
adequate medical care whilst working on board”; in
paragraph 3, that “Each Member shall ensure that
seafarers on board ships in its territory who are in
need of immediate medical care are given access to the
Member’s medical facilities on shore”; and, in
paragraph 4, that “The requirements for on-board
health protection and medical care set out in the Code
include standards for measures aimed at providing
seafarers with health protection and medical care as
comparable as possible to that which is generally
available to workers ashore”.
 Structure of the Guide to ship sanitation
 This guide is structured into the following chapters:
 • Chapter 1. Introduction
 • Chapter 2. Water
 • Chapter 3. Food
 • Chapter 4. Recreational water environments
 • Chapter 5. Ballast water
 • Chapter 6. Waste management and disposal
 • Chapter 7. Vector and reservoir control
 • Chapter 8. Controlling infectious disease agents in the
environment.
 Chapter 1 sets the guide in its legal context, considering the
IHR 2005 and describing its relationship to other
international documents ,regulations and standards.
 Each of chapters 2–8 follows the same structural approach
and consists of two sections: background and guidelines.
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