The shortlist for the International Seafarers’ Welfare Awards has been announced. The Awards ceremony will take place on 24^th June at The Manila Hotel in the Philippines. Generously funded by the ITF Seafarers Trust, and sponsored by Inmarsat and Crewtoo, the awards reward the companies and organisations that have offered seafarers the highest standard in services and facilities. With each candidate nominated by seafarers, the Awards are an opportunity for seafarers to say thank you to those who have made a difference to their lives, and to raise awareness of their needs.

The shortlisted candidates are as follows:

For Seafarers’ Centre of the Year (sponsored by Wrist Ship Supply): Stella Maris, Barcelona, Spain; MTS Busan, South Korea; Stella Maris, Mackay-Hay Point, Australia; Port Arthur International Seafarers Center, USA; MTS Townsville, Australia; MTS, Victoria- Australia

For Shipping Company of the Year (sponsored by Garrets):Anglo-Eastern Ship Management; Carnival Cruise Lines; MF Shipping; P&O Cruises; Seaspan Ship Management Ltd

For Port of the Year:Port of Bremerhaven, Germany; Brunsbuttel Ports GmbH, Germany; Port of Kandla, India; Copenhagen Malmo Port AB, Sweden/Denmark; The Port of Singapore

For The Dr Dierk Lindemann Welfare Personality of the Year*; Organisation (sponsored by The International Chamber of Shipping):AMOSUP; Humans At Sea; Hunterlink

For The Dr Dierk Lindemann Welfare Personality of the Year; Individual (sponsored by The International Chamber of Shipping):Pst Joseph Chacko (India); Howard Drysdale (UK); Rev Stephen Miller (East Asia); Maike Puchert (Germany); Fr Edward Pracz (Poland); Roger Stone (UK)

Roger Harris, ISWAN Executive Director, said “We are delighted to be able to hold the 2016 awards’ ceremony in the Philippines, where a large number of the world’s seafarers are from. Congratulations to the shortlisted candidates who have all demonstrated their great commitment to improving the lives of seafarers. We look forward to announcing the winners during the lead up to our Day of the Seafarer Celebrations which will go ahead in Manila the following day”

The awards will be presented to winners by IMO Secretary General Mr Kitack Lim. Around 300 attendees including representatives from shipping companies, unions and welfare organisations are expected at the event. It is a night of celebration, as well as an opportunity to raise the profile of seafarers’ welfare.

The judging panels for each category can be viewed here.

*The award is named after Dr Dierk Lindemann who was instrumental in the adoption of the MLC in 2006 serving as Managing Director of the German Ship owners' Association and Ship owners' Group Spokesperson at the ILO.

Awards are funded by The ITF Seafarers Trust. They are also supported by the ILO, IMO, ICS, ICMA, Crewtoo, Inmarsat, Wrist Ship Supply and Garrets.

For further information about the awards, please visit www.seafarerswelfareawards.org or contact Caitlin Vaughan