"I present myself for any sort of criticism and suggestions regarding my ministry and its departments. For the very first time in the history of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs, a minister is here to hear the woes of the seafarers" said the Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Syed Ali Haider Zaidi in an open discussion session with the seafarer community. In response to the complaints registered with the number and email given by the minister in his Anticorruption initiative, shipping and manning agents, personnel from the ministry and seafarers from all age groups were gathered under the same roof. "I will purge the ministry of any corruption occurring in any of the department. Gone are the days when this ministry was used as a source of looting the people" reiterated the minister. The minister told the audience of the steps he is trying to take for the betterment of the seafarer community, such as ease in VISA in foreign countries, digitization of the shipping office, issuance of SID cards from NADRA Offices from all over Pakistan, ease in Sign-on and Sign-off and introduction of Ok-To-Board in high demand countries. The minister specifically dealt with the complaints of malpractice in the shipping office and brought the responsible personnels to book. He also shared his vision of making Pakistan Marine Academy a Marine University, which was lauded by the audience. The Minister shared the shipping policy with the audience, which includes a tax exemption for ships till 2030 that will help this industry grow, first berthing right to Pakistani Flag carrier ships, first right to PNSC for energy imports and the declaration of shipping as a strategic industry. The minister, concluding the session, declared his intention to conduct such session quarterly. -*-*-*-
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