Following the enactment of Law 202 of July 17, 2025, through which Panama adopts the Convention Relating to the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP), in coordination with the Panama Canal Authority (ACP), is promoting the initiation and strengthening of the country's participation before this international organization, as part of a strategy aimed at national hydrographic development.
This process represents a key step for the Panamanian State, enabling it to strengthen compliance with international hydrographic obligations, which are fundamental to guaranteeing navigational safety, the protection of human life at sea, and the preservation of the marine environment, among other priority aspects for the maritime, port, and logistics sectors. These commitments also constitute essential pillars within the periodic audits conducted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of Member States.
In this context, the Panama Maritime Authority ( AMP) Administrator , Luis Roquebert, reiterated the institution's full willingness to lead the development of a national roadmap, with short-, medium-, and long-term actions aimed at consolidating Panama's participation in the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). He also reaffirmed the commitment to ensuring the country's active presence in regional forums and working groups, prioritizing the technical and public policy contributions expected of Panama as a Member State.
For his part, the Director of the IHO, Luigi Sinapi, presented the organization's strategic vision, highlighting the benefits that the full implementation of the convention brings to member countries, including access to technical cooperation, modernization of hydrographic capabilities and alignment with international standards.
Last July, the National Assembly approved Bill 202, which ratifies the Convention on the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO), signed in Monaco on May 3, 1967, and amended by the Protocol of April 14, 2005. With this instrument, Panama joins international efforts to organize and standardize hydrography, a discipline focused on the study and collection of information on terrestrial and maritime waters, for the benefit of navigational safety.
.jpg&w=256&q=75)
