JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia is to add 55 new ships to its maritime transport fleet as part of a raft of initiatives to boost the sector, officials revealed on Thursday. Fareed Al-Qahtani, vice chairman responsible for maritime transport at the Saudi Public Transport Authority (PTA), said the Kingdom was also supporting global efforts to protect the environment, reduce marine pollution and increase the number of women working in the sector. He was speaking on the sidelines of the international Sustainable Maritime Development Conference Towards 2030 and Beyond, being held in Jeddah. Al-Qahtani said: “Fifty-five new ships will be added to the Saudi fleet of 368 ships. The Kingdom has 10 of the largest carriers in the world and is part of 40 international conventions issued by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). “These conventions positively impacted the Kingdom’s maritime transport sector, which reflects its commitment to the IMO’s decisions. They support the national economy by improving the safety of Saudi ships, protecting the Kingdom’s beaches from pollution, raising the efficiency of workers on board and facilitating navigation. “Two colleges for maritime studies were accredited, which will help make up for the lack of qualified maritime cadres in this vital sector. The Kingdom issued maritime certificates of competency for the first time in 2019 according to the highest scientific and operational standards,” he added. “The Kingdom supports efforts to protect the environment and reduce marine pollution. This issue, along with the protection of natural resources and sustainable development, are at the heart of the Kingdom’s National Transformation Program. “As a result, the Kingdom’s beaches are pollution-free despite the fact that 13 percent of global shipping traffic passes through the Red Sea.” Al-Qahtani noted that the empowerment of women was one of the IMO’s main goals. “Saudi women are present in the maritime transport sector, with the first Saudi female naval officer having just graduated. “The large participation in the conference contributes to the establishment of international partnerships through the IMO, the exchange of experience, knowledge and information among experts and achieves the highest proportion of direct cooperation. “The Kingdom has made qualitative leaps in maritime transport in terms of ship registration and cargo tonnage. Tonnage doubled between 2017 and 2018 to reach 8 million tons and is expected to reach 9 million tons by the end of 2019,” he added.