Flexible Initiatives for the Safety of Shipping! The Conclusions of the Round Table where there have been present People from the Academic Environment, Naval Authorities, Ship owners and Operators

The lack of legislation, poor infrastructure, unjustifiably high charges imposed by the naval authorities, the problems of the Romanian fleet, and many other issues of major interest in the Romanian shipping industry have been intensely discussed by the representatives of academia, public authorities, naval authorities, ship-owners and operators in this field in the special context created by the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the “Danubius” University, a round table on “Developing and Running Successful Shipping Businesses”, which took place on Friday, January 19, 2018, at the Danubius University.

The hosts of this event, Senior Lecturer Mădălina BĂLĂU, PhD - coordinator of the Master program Shipping International Trade and Finance, and her colleagues, Professor Florin Dan PUŞCACIU, PhD and Professor Viorica PUŞCACIU, PhD, experts with valuable scientific and practical expertise in the field of shipping, have organized this event in order to launch a new challenge for the participants, highlighting the main shortcomings of the practice in the field of shipping and its maritime and river components and to establish a common strategy for the academic environment, naval authorities, local public institutions, ship owners and naval operators to reach at the level of the central government.

The opening of the debates was preceded by the intervention of Associate Professor Andy Corneliu PUŞCĂ, PhD, Rector of “Danubius” University, who has familiarized the public with examples of facts and people which gradually built the international, entrepreneurial, open and online profile of the host university, a profile perfectly adapted to the realities of the labor market and the complex dynamics of different sectors of activity, exemplifying the active role played by this higher education institution in the field of shipping, by carrying out the unique master program in Romania “Shipping International Trade and Finance”, as well as by being a member of the Naval Cluster – the result of a European project in which APDM was a partner.

The presence of the well-known Professor Eleftherios THALASSINOS, PhD, member of the School of Industrial and Maritime Studies - Department of Maritime Studies at the University of Piraeus, Greece, with over 30 years of experience in the academic field and with an impressive expertise in Shipping, acknowledged the importance of this meeting, which has passed the stage of superficial discussions and highlighted real “attack” initiatives that are considered essential to solve many of the issues raised on this occasion. The Professor has responded to the challenge raised by Alina Raileanu, PhD, Director of Danubius International Business School (DIBS), to present the latest trends in International Shipping domain.

All the interventions were punctual, referring specifically to sensitive issues registered in the naval field, issues that require urgent intervention by local, regional and national officials, institutions which according to Mr. Gheorghe ANTISTESCU - General Manager ROMNAV SA, “reach the water” and have to become supporters of the ship owners and the harbors.

The subject of Romania's longest highway, the Danube, has monopolized the debates in this event, focusing on the complexity of problems encountered at the level of the river, especially by navigators.

On the same page, Mr. Gheorghe ANTISTESCU - General Manager of ROMNAV SA, criticized Romania's legislation in the field of shipping, highlighting the erroneous harmonization between maritime and fluvial at the legislative level, the exaggerated level of port taxes to be borne by the ship-owner, the need to attract funds in this area, making adjustments, as well as other issues that the river transport is facing.

The ineffectiveness of the shipping studies left without practical transposition was argued by Mrs. Carmen COSTACHE, Director General Adj. of the APDM, considering that it is important to take action, by adopting the policy of small steps, by establishing short, medium and long-term strategies and by undertaking concrete and immediate actions. Mrs. Carmen COSTACHE also invoked the negative effects on shipping due to the lack of a coherent transport strategy for Romania.

At the end of the event, Associate Professor Andy Corneliu PUŞCĂ, PhD, granted to the special guest Professor Eleftherios THALASSINOS, PhD, Doctor Honoris Causa of “Danubius” University, a plaque in appreciation of the special dedication and commitment to the international development of maritime studies and for the openness shown to the collaboration between the two higher education institutions at academic and scientific level.

We mention the people that have participated in this event: Carmen COSTACHE - Deputy General Manager of APDM; Mrs. Gabriela BRĂGĂU - Braila County Council; Mr. Gheorghe ANTISTESCU - General Manager ROMNAV S.A .; Mr. Eng. Corneliu CARP - The Lower Danube River Administration R.A. Galati; Mr. Leonard Lucian COTIGA - Executive Director of the Association of Ship owners and Operators of River Ports in Romania (AAOPFR); Mr. Fakhouri HAMMED MOAD - General Manager ARUAMAR SHIPPING SRL; Mr. Eugen FRUNZĂ - General Manager NAVLOMAR SHIPPING Galati.

Spokesperson – “Danubius” University

Ana Alina IONESCU DUMITRACHE