Impact of the Pandemic on global Shipping

Abstract

The world is no more the same. It has witnessed one of the worst humanitarian crises due to
the Pandemic-Covid-19. Just few months from its detection, by July 2020, over 14.8 million
people had been infected, with the numbers increasing. The evident erosions were in the loss
of trade volumes and financial recovery for all economies has become a challenge. The effect
on Global shipping was immediate due to the lockdown, shutting down of manufacturing units,
loss of tourism economy, port congestions/shut down, crew change and pending crew
repatriation, restricted landing ashore by seafarers, certification of ships/seafarers. The effects
are still showing as challenges are being met and overcome.
The vulnerability to such situations for the existing education models and management of
supply chain logistics are couple of aspects, which could be analyzed in the backdrop of the
pandemic.
The paper will attempt to provide a lens view on the need of sea change in existing protocols
and maritime education models, economics, enterprises and e-business modules for an
innovative and recalibrated dynamics towards what may be called as the ‘Sea the future’, post
Covid-19. This paper will review the available literature while comparing the existing models
with the innovative work plans for crew change, hybrid marine education and digitized
breakthroughs for cargo documentation, certification of ships and crew etc.
It will be proposed that blue economy can be revitalized by means of Artificial intelligence,
Machine learning, Virtual and Augmented reality, Internet of things, Block chain technology,
cybersecurity and more importantly a stimulus, by providing more liquidity to cash-flow by
Nations, more as enablers for all these. Geo-politics and climate-change are couple of more
immunity boosters for sustainable goal directives to thwart future impacts of even or worse
quantum against downward graph of ‘V’ model of economics in ‘BLUE ECONOMY’.
The learning modules must be more universally aligned with outcome based learning modes
that will improve critical and innovative thinking which will prepare the current youth for
future. ‘Just in time’ combined with ‘Just in case preparedness’, lean-inventory models would
be the models. Apart from a relook at FAL, MLC, the Neptune Declaration has to be seriously
considered.
Shipping has been adopting newer technologies in a slow manner yet has made noticeable
improvements in fuel efficiency, emission reductions and port operations etc. This must
continue with the net of digitalization. Further studies with post-Covid perspectives will
provide impetus to the efforts.