On October 30, " the Third ASEAN-China Seminar on the Implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention" opened in Guangzhou, with over 70 participants from the International Labour Organization (ILO), the ASEAN Secretariat, maritime labour convention implementation authorities of ASEAN countries, as well as China  Ministry of Transport, China Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security,China Ministry of Finance, relevant industry organizations, shipping companies and maritime colleges. Xu Chun, Deputy Director of the Maritime Safety Administration of China attended the conference and delivered a speech.

In his speech, Mr Xu pointed out that since 2018,  ASEAN countries and China have adhered to the concept of common development in cooperation on implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, maintained close and good communication and achieved fruitful results. He hoped that this conference would deepen mutual understanding and communication in cooperation on implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, bring stronger and longer-term development momentum for all parties in strengthening the protection of seafarers' rights and interests and provide regional experience for the healthy and sustainable development of the global shipping industry.

At this conference,  ASEAN countries and China exchanged and discussed the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention. The ILO and industry organizations shared best practices and experiences in implementing the convention and conducted discussions on cooperation in this regard, which aimed to promote the establishment of a more pragmatic and effective cooperation mechanism for implementation and effectively enhanced the protection of seafarers' rights and interests as well as their career development.

The ASEAN-China Seminar on the Implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention is a cooperation mechanism platform under the "ASEAN-China Strategic Planning for Transport Cooperation," aiming to deepen cooperation between China and ASEAN in implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, comprehensively improve the regional level of implementation, and promote sustainable development of the regional and global shipping industry.