IAPH 70th Anniversary Book October 2025

The Ports and Harbours Association of Japan

Foreword

It is my honour to welcome you, dear readers, to the “International Association of Ports and Harbors 70th Anniversary Booklet” – a testament of seven decades of global collaboration within the IAPH. As the 33rd President of the IAPH, I take great pride in contributing to the leadership of our association at such a historic milestone. This booklet stands as a tribute to the enduring spirit of cooperation that has defined our journey since the very beginning.

To commemorate our roots in Kobe, Japan, I am grateful that we return to the IAPH’s birthplace for our seventieth anniversary conference. More than 70 years ago, in 1952, a historic meeting was held at Kobe University in Japan. It was there that Gaku Matsumoto, Chairman of the Japan Ports and Harbours Association and a representative of the Japanese Ministry of Home Affairs, together with Chujiro Haraguchi, Mayor of Kobe, laid the foundation for what would become the IAPH. While the initial gathering was primarily composed of American and Japanese ports, it was driven by a shared vision: to foster international collaboration among global ports. This vision came to life at the inaugural conference hosted by the Port of Los Angeles in 1955, marking the official founding of the IAPH.

Reflecting on the early days of the IAPH, the motto “World Peace through World Trade and World Trade through World Ports”, coined in 1963 by Mr. Matsumoto, our first Secretary General (1955–1967), continues to resonate. It is a poignant irony of history that this vision remains as relevant today as ever, reminding us of the vital role ports play in the prosperity of global trade.

Just as individual ports had to adapt and reinvent themselves over the decades, so too has the IAPH. Since the constitutional reform in 2016, the association has broadened its scope beyond the port sector, engaging with the wider maritime industry and adjacent stakeholders. This transformation has strengthened IAPH’s relevance and impact across all six global regions.

Guided by our three strategic pillars climate and energy, data collaboration, and risk and resilience, IAPH has delivered tangible value to its members, welcomed back former ones, and attracted new participants. In my second term as IAPH president, I am committed to deepening these pillars by accelerating digitalisation and smart infrastructure, advancing sustainable port development, enhancing resilience, and nurturing the next generation of port professionals to future-proof our industry.

Jens Meier President of IAPH Hamburg Port Authority CEO

Many of today’s challenges echo those of the past, and we continue to draw inspiration from the foresight and leadership of our predecessors whose legacy is honoured in this commemorative booklet. At the same time, I want to emphasise the contributors of the present with today’s IAPH board, council members, staff, and members, whose belief

in a global forum for industry collaboration and excellence drives our progress.

I extend my sincere gratitude to the Ports & Harbours Association of Japan and the Japanese Foundation for IAPH for their generous support in making this publication possible.

Foreword

Dr Patrick Verhoeven Managing Director of IAPH

As we mark the 70th anniversary of the International Association of Ports and Harbors, we reflect on seven decades of remarkable progress. Our heritage — shaped through historic milestones — serves as a beacon as we navigate the challenges and opportunities of the future.

IMO Secretary General C.P. Srivastava identified three defining hallmarks up until that point at the 14th IAPH World Ports Conference in Hamburg when we celebrated our 50th year: the growth of ship sizes and containerisation, the need for technical assistance to developing countries, and the founding of the World Maritime University to develop future talent. These themes remain as relevant today as they were then.

Our technical committee members focus on tools to develop resilient port infrastructure

that serve increasingly sophisticated supply chains and vessels powered by new fuels. Their work encompasses closing the digital and physical divides between developed and developing nations to ensure no port is left behind in decarbonisation, data collaboration, climate adaptation and mitigation, safety, and security. As ports rapidly evolve, upskilling people and attracting new talent is becoming a critical success factor.

Our history is rich with defining achievements: UN and IMO recognition in the 1960s cemented our role at the top table of maritime policymaking. From an initial safety focus, IAPH has now submitted 42 port-related proposals with member states and other NGOs on environment, safety and trade facilitation since 2017 alone. From an initial 1993 Sydney conference resolution where the idea was proposed, the Environmental Ship Index has been running for 14 years, now measuring over 6,000 vessels being incentivised by over 70 ports. Building on pioneering climate initiatives, we launched the World Ports Sustainability Program in 2018 covering all UN Sustainable Development goals — today with over 500 shared projects engaging 195 ports in 71 countries.

This legacy exists because of our members, leaders, and people. Just as our founders united the world’s ports, we are advancing operational excellence, and resilience. Together, we will continue to promote the interests of ports worldwide, champion sustainability, and shape a thriving maritime future.

Dr Masahiko Furuichi Secretary General of IAPH

On the occasion of our 70th anniversary, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to our colleagues for their hard work on the publication of the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) 70th Anniversary booklet, which covers the history, current status and future direction of the association.

IAPH was established in 1955 as a non-governmental organization (NGO) comprising port authorities, operators, and port-related industries, including logistics and maritime service providers, as well as other port and shipping stakeholders from around the world. Today IAPH represents some 190 ports and 170 port-related businesses in 89 countries.

In 1955, Gaku Matsumoto as the first secretary general, affirmed the association’s goals that “ports should exist ever for co-operation and not for competition”.

In the March 1963 article of Ports and Harbors magazine, he affirmed that “the peace of the world and the happiness of mankind can no longer be achieved today merely by politics or political tactics peculiar to any individual countries, but can only be acquired by the world trade which hinges on the spirit of interdependence and good neighbourhood. However, the promotion of world trade can never be realized without effecting the perfection of all ports of the world so as to enable them to give full play to their functions.” In this sense, he proposed the IAPH motto: “World Peace through World Trade; World Trade through World Ports.”

Seventy years have passed since the IAPH was established, and the world today is far away from what the founder of the IAPH envisioned. In Kobe, the place where it all began, we must reaffirm our commitment to advancing the sustainable development of the global port and maritime industries.

We are confident that, over the next seventy years, the association will strengthen its role and activities to achieve our motto, “World Peace through World Trade; World Trade through World Ports.”

Best wishes for many more years of success for IAPH.

Foreword

From the moment the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) was granted consultative status with IMO in October 1967, the relationship between the two organisations has deepened and flourished, built upon shared priorities of ensuring safer, more secure, more efficient shipping on cleaner seas.

Ports occupy a unique and indispensable position within the maritime sector. As gateways for more than 80 per cent of world trade in goods, they are the hubs where ships directly interact with people, communities and national economies. The daily operations of ports reflect the tangible outcomes of IMO’s conventions, whether in safety and security, pollution prevention, or trade facilitation.

Over the decades, IAPH has been a valued partner in translating IMO’s global framework into practical improvements at the ship–shore interface. In the early years, as trade expanded and vessels grew larger, cooperation centred on safety. IAPH has provided its expertise in helping to shape IMO regulations, including those related to vessel traffic services, ship reporting systems, and port traffic signals, contributing to improved maritime safety and port efficiency.

Following the tragic events of 11 September 2001, the collaboration between our organisations was instrumental in the adoption of the International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code, ushering in a new era of port security worldwide.

On the environmental front, IAPH has provided valuable input into the continuous development of MARPOL Annex VI to cut emissions from ships, and ports vital support is evidenced in the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) resolutions encouraging voluntary cooperation between ports and shipping to reduce vessel GHG emissions, including promoting incentive schemes for green shipping and supporting the efficient and safe handling and bunkering of alternative low-carbon and zero-carbon fuels. Looking ahead, ports will have a key role in implementing the IMO Net Zero Framework, supporting investment in port infrastructure to enable the transition to low- and zero-emission fuels.

The demands of digitalisation and evolving security threats will require even closer collaboration. In this regard, IAPH’s leadership and contribution to IMO’s work on Maritime Single Windows, cybersecurity and just-in-time port calls are fundamental

in strengthening global efforts to build more resilient and secure supply chains.

On behalf of IMO, I warmly congratulate IAPH on 70 years of service to the global port community, and I look forward to many

more years of partnership in shaping a resilient and sustainable maritime transport sector for people and planet.

Made by ports, for ports

Sparked by a vision of the world’s first international ports conference – and sustained by the idea that global peace could be strengthened through stronger trade links – the International Association of Ports & Harbors was a characteristic post-war Japanese innovation.

Enlightened and ambitious, the IAPH grew rapidly, becoming a recognised NGO that enjoyed consultative status with crucial international organisations. It emerged enhanced from the financial storms of the 1970s, thanks to the creation of a Maintenance Foundation, and it continued into the 21st century, responding deftly to changes in both the character of global trade and the needs of its members.

Looking back, the organisation’s biennial conferences serve as a vivid record of the association’s history – each gathering now stands as a time capsule of how the IAPH and its membership adapted to a changing world.

THE HISTORY OF IAPH

Introduction

The first conference

It could be said that the IAPH World Ports Conference is older than the association itself. In the autumn of 1951, Gaku Matsumoto approached Dr Chujiro Haraguchi, the mayor of Kobe, with the idea of fulfilling a goal that he’d cherished since founding the Ports and Harbours Association of Japan three decades earlier: he wanted Japan to host the world’s first ever international port conference.

Expressions of interest were sought from the American Association of Port Authorities in Washington, and from the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, and the challenging work of budgeting for the event began. Invites were dispatched to those countries with regular shipping routes to Japan; embassies were contacted to invite wider participation. Ultimately, six countries from Asia and fifteen representatives from various

ports in the United States joined observers from 16 other countries at the event, held in 1952. It became clear that East Asian delegates were in favour of creating a new international association and that delegates from Los Angeles would be open to hosting a second conference.

On the morning of 9 October, in the lobby of the Oriental Hotel, Japanese and American participants discussed a motion containing three proposals: to create a new, permanent international association for ports around the world; with a permanent organisation, entrusted to the Ports and Harbours Association of Japan; and with a second port conference to be held in Los Angeles. These three resolutions were passed unanimously. Soon, both the International Association of Ports and Harbors and the World Ports Conference would become a reality.

The founding of IAPH

Following the first International Port Conference held in Kobe in 1952, a second conference was held in Los Angeles, with the intention of establishing a permanent association. Postponed until November 1955 to ensure maximum attendance, the second International Port & Harbor Conference is remembered as the founding meeting of IAPH.

The decision to establish the new association may have been clearly supported, but the question of who would lead it was yet to be resolved. Despite strong encouragement from American representatives, founder Gaku Matsumoto declined to become the first IAPH president. He reasoned that Japan should not dominate the association. A selection committee, composed of members from Asia, Europe, and America, appointed Bennett

J. Roberts (Canada) as president, John Iwar Dahlin (Sweden) as first vice president, and Ching-wen Chen (China) as second vice president. Fourteen directors were elected, and a board meeting was held, during which it was decided that the central secretariat would be located in Tokyo.

Gaku Matsumoto was appointed as the first secretary general. When reviewing the goals of the organisation for delegates, he affirmed that “ports should exist ever for cooperation and not for competition”.

The 1955 conference is also remembered for a group photograph taken at the Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles (right). This iconic image of international port professionals continues to serve as a reminder of the association’s legacy and its trans-pacific founding.

1956 – 1959

The

dawn of containerisation

The founding of IAPH in Los Angeles in 1955 saw the adoption of a constitution stipulating that the association’s conference should take place every three years. Therefore, readers may be confused by the accompanying photo of the next edition of the conference – held in Mexico – which proudly identifies it as the Second Triennial Conference… in 1959.

This is because economic difficulties in the original host nation meant that the conference had to be delayed by a year while a new site was selected. Also, while this was the third conference overall, it was in fact the second within the association’s envisaged triennial cycle.

Held in Mexico City in June, the 1959 conference was opened by the country’s presi dent, Adolfo López Mateos, and attended by 191 participants from 13 countries, including new additions such as France and Australia. Although containerisation was still in its infancy, the conference represented a milestone in recognising the significance of the topic for global ports. It was addressed via

the newly formed Committee on Port Administration and Utilization (the other key committee was focused on Commerce and International Relations) and via many of the 22 papers that were presented at the event.

A proposal for honorary membership was passed and an executive committee was established to handle association matters between conferences. Despite some unexpected delays, IAPH was making small but significant changes that brought it closer to the organisation we know today.

An inspirational message from JFK

The 1963 edition of IAPH’s International Ports Conference, held in New Orleans, opened with a message from the American President, John F. Kennedy.

“We welcome to our shores this group representing ports of the free world. Your efforts in the promotion of world trade make an important contribution to the improvement of living standards everywhere and to mankind’s goal of world peace. Best wishes for a successful gathering, John Kennedy.”

Held May 1–4, this edition of the conference was, as JFK had hoped, a success. It attracted 138 participants from 13 countries, including new attendees from Belgium, Colombia, Israel and the United Kingdom, and it benefited from collaborations with the concurrent Mississippi Valley World Trade Conference. The conference also marked a period of astute organisational refinement for IAPH. Proceedings included the creation of a tri-regional system, comprising the Americas, Europe (including Africa and the Mediterranean) and Asia (including Oceania and the Persian Gulf).

A decision was finalised that the interval between conferences would reduce from three to two years, setting in motion a biennial event schedule that continued uninterrupted for more than half a century.

These key changes built on efforts towards organisational enhancement that had been

underway since the 1959 Mexico edition of the conference, including the decision to have the Executive Committee meet separately from the conference to discuss the business of the association, and the creation of the Standing Committees (the precursors to today’s Technical Committees).

A venue change had again delayed the IAPH conference by a year, but nonetheless the association’s progress remained inexorable.

1964 – 1966

A milestone in London

Three organisational factors make IAPH an effective representational body for world ports: its standing as a recognised NGO, its consultative status with crucial international organisations, and the fact that it operates on a truly global basis. In the association’s infancy, each of these features represented a long-term institutional goal, and all three milestones were reached around the time of the organisation’s 10th anniversary –marked by the Fourth Conference of the IAPH, which took place in London, May 10–14, 1965.

Held at the Café Royal on Regent Street (today the Hotel Café Royal), the event was chaired by Viscount Simon of the Port of London Authority with HRH The Duke of Edinburgh as its patron, and saw double the attendees of the previous conference. The growth around the London event mirrored the organisation’s rapid membership expansion, particularly with regard to European ports; until this point, “Europe had been a hard nut to crack for IAPH”, remembered secretary general Gaku Matsumoto.

Discussions at the conference emphasised cooperation with global organisations like the UN, World Bank, and OECD, to aid developing countries. Indeed, following earlier meetings with the secretariat, J.N. Bathurst, a representative of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), spoke at the conference and outlined the procedures for establishing

a relationship between the association and UN ECOSOC.

The next year, IAPH was granted Category B non-governmental advisory status by the UN and went on to acquire consultative status with organisations such as UNCTAD and the IMO. In recent years, London has increased in importance for the association. It is the home not only of the IMO but also of the IAPH Europe team, with a shared office space at the Park Street headquarters of the British Ports Association; it has also become the venue for the annual in-person Technical Committee days.

These developments represent the continuation of a proud legacy of international engagement; as Matsumoto later observed, “it is not too much at all to say that IAPH became a world organisation only by dint of the London conference.”

1967 – 1969

Mayor of Kobe takes the helm

IAPH returned home to Japan for its 1967 conference held in Tokyo – an event that was approached as a matter of national importance by the Japanese government. The minister of transport was appointed as chairman of the organising committee and 20 IAPH representatives were received by the Emperor and Empress at the Imperial Palace.

Appropriately, the conference saw the mayor of Kobe, Dr Chujiro Haraguchi (pictured), elected president of IAPH. Haraguchi had been instrumental in Kobe’s selection as the venue for the first conference. He had also spent nearly two decades developing Kobe into an international city, enhancing its transportation infrastructure and ensuring the modernisation of the port facilities, preparing the city for the global industry shift to containerisation.

Kobe was not alone among IAPH members in recognising that containers were going to revolutionise trade: containerisation was perhaps the most pressing concern at the 1967 conference, along with the question of international port development.

On that topic, a proposal was made to establish an IAPH Technical Assistance Fund for ports in Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. These industry trends were then extensively addressed at IAPH’s first southern-hemi sphere conference, held in Melbourne two

years later (notably with the participation of the Soviet Union).

By this time, developments of equal importance were taking place outside the biennial conference: in 1967, the association had been officially designated as a consultative NGO by the UN Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization (IMCO, now IMO). Faced with surging membership, the Tokyo head office modernised its operations, relocating its head office to larger quarters and consolidating the organisation’s communications so that its newsletter was merged with the quarterly Ports & Harbors magazine to create a single monthly publication.

The magazine – like the association’s strong links to the city of Kobe – remains an enduring point of strength for IAP to this day.

1970 – 1973

The Foundation is established

By the end of the 1960s, following years of tireless development, IAPH was internationally established and boasted a growing membership. Yet such progress did not immunise the association against the global economic trends that characterised the early years of the next decade. In fact, IAPH was particularly vulnerable to the twin challenges of the 1971 “Nixon Shock” – which saw the US president abandon the Gold Standard – and the 1973 oil crisis.

These factors jeopardised both the Association’s finances and its location: since the IAPH headquarters in Japan received membership dues in US dollars, the appreciation of the yen led to a decline in revenue when converted to yen and a relative increase in operating costs.

Taking inspiration from the funding activities of Japanese maritime foundations, secretary general Toru Akiyama (who had succeeded Gaku Matsumoto in 1967) moved to establish an IAPH Head Office Maintenance Foundation. Established by donations from Japan, it would be incorporated under Japanese law to operate the head office, funded by membership dues, other IAPH income, and funds from companies or organisations within Japan. His proposal received basic approval by the executive committee in Lisbon in May 1972, and the head office received authorisation from the Japanese government to move ahead in January 1973.

All that remained was approval at the next IAPH conference, held in Amsterdam in May 1973. This was a critical juncture for the Association: if the foundation was not secured, then a substantial increase in dues was inevitable — the third increase in as many years. This might result in the dissolution of the IAPH.

Akiyama’s emergency motion explained that the appreciation of the Japanese yen following the Nixon Shock, and the high rate of inflation prevailing in Japan, “posed grave financial difficulties for the Association”. The proposal was approved by unanimous vote and representatives from the IAPH and the Foundation put their signatures to the agreement, which was to come into effect in June 1973. IAPH’s future was secure.

Founding Contributors

Japan Shipping Foundation

Nippon Kaiji Foundation

The Japanese Shipowners’ Association

The Ports & Harbours Association of Japan

Tokyo Metropolitan Government

City of Yokohama

Nagoya Port Authority

City of Kobe

City of Kawasaki

Yokkaichi Port Authority

City of Kitakyushu

City of Osaka

Town of Hiroo

City of Fukuoka

City of Hirara

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha

Japan Line

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd.

Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd.

Yamashita Shin Nippon Kisen, Ltd.

Showa Shipping Co., Ltd.

Nippon Steel Corporation

Nippon Kokan K.K.

Toru Akiyama

1974 – 1979

The era of expansion

After the jeopardy of the early 1970s, which saw IAPH react to the prevalent economic headwinds by forming a foundation, the association entered a period of expansion. By August 1973, UNCTAD had recognised the association as a non-governmental consultative body. Following recognition by ECOSOC in 1966 and IMCO (later IMO) in 1967, this was the third international body to which the association could submit recommendations. IAPH directors were appointed as liaison officers to expedite lines of communication with these organisations. Meanwhile, the work of the association’s committees became more specialised and ambitious.

At the Singapore edition of the conference in 1975, a new committee was established to increase membership levels and elevate IAPH’s global prestige, while at the Houston Conference in 1977, a special committee on community relations was established to study methods of “achieving community understanding of the role of ports”. By the time delegates gathered at the Casino de Deauville near the Port of Le Havre in France for the 1979 conference, IAPH’s monthly special committees were generating significant policy outcomes.

The theme of the Le Havre conference (which attracted nearly 500 delegates from 66 countries) was “the Future of World Ports”. The keynote was delivered by RussianAmerican economist Wassily Leontief, the

1973 winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. In his address, Leontief noted that the volume of world trade would “probably quadruple between the years 1970 and 2000” and that “a similar increase in capital investment is necessary, and can be expected to bring commensurate benefits.” His detailed presentation – which covered port investment methods, fluctuations of major cargo, increases in containerisable cargo, and port efficiency – made a deep impression on the audience; the question-and-answer session that followed lasted for nearly an hour, as delegates turned their thoughts to the dawn of the 21st century.

The deaths of founding fathers Gaku Matsumoto in 1974 and Chujiro Haraguchi in 1976 had signalled the end of the organisation’s infancy, yet IAPH was approaching its quarter-century with vision, confidence and a growing international reputation.

1980 – 1984

Reflections on a silver jubilee

For IAPH, the 1980s began with celebration and reflection. The association’s 12th biennial conference, which took place in Nagoya, Japan in May 1981, marked 25 years of operation. Prior to the gathering, IAPH paid tribute to its founding fathers by placing dedicated memorial monuments at the graves of Gaku Matsumoto in Tokyo, and Chujiro Haraguchi in Kobe.

In his address at the occasion of the Tokyo memorial, IAPH president Paul Bastard quoted an old Chinese proverb: those who drink the water must remember those who dug the well.

IAPH’s silver jubilee was marked by a determination that it should present itself as the leading force in solving global port challenges. Around the world, tanker accidents were generating headlines. March 1978 had seen the largest oil spill disaster ever, when the tanker Amoco Cadiz ran aground off the coast of Brittany, France spilling 220,000 tons of crude oil. Collisions and explosions just outside port limits of Copenhagen, Oman and Singapore earlier in the decade demonstrated the high risk of blocked approach channels and

hindered port traffic – not to mention environmental damage and loss of life.

Resolutions made in Nagoya provide evidence of IAPH’s determination to influence the direction of reform on this topic: making proposals on appropriate levels of liability for damages from such incidents and adequate effective insurance covering the responsibilities of shippers and shipowners, to be considered in future updates to IMCO instruments.

Further resolutions were made at the 1983 Vancouver conference and correspondence continued between senior figures at the IAPH and the renamed IMO, ahead of a 1984 IMO Diplomatic Conference. That meeting saw the adoption of draft Protocols to the 1969 Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage and to the 1971 Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage. That year, IAPH also joined ICS and OCIMF in producing the second edition of the International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals – further evidence of the association’s commitment to bringing a port perspective to the most critical maritime matters of the day.

Leadership and partnership 1985 – 1987

Long-serving IMO secretary general C.P. Srivastava set the scene for IAPH’s 14th biennial conference, held in Hamburg. His keynote address at the 1985 edition reflected on three decades of change within maritime transportation, spanning IAPH’s life to date.

Srivastava noted the growth of ship sizes, the impact of containerisation, the need for continued technical assistance to developing countries and the founding of the World Maritime University as the major hallmarks of the era. He also noted that collaboration had proven crucial, with the IAPH playing a major role in supporting IMO initiatives – including those around vessel traffic services, ship reporting systems, and port traffic signals – that had improved maritime safety and port efficiency.

By this point in the decade, some fundamental societal changes had been catalysed: globalisation and personal computers were slowly but steadily gaining influence. These tectonic shifts in technology and trade were acknowledged in a conference program that aimed to help port management to meet the challenges of the future. Yet outside of conference sessions, delegates were also able to look back, enjoying visits to Hamburg’s

Old Warehouse District and a special performance of Carmen at the Hamburg Opera House.

During this period, IAPH continued its campaigning work via key resolutions: in Hamburg, opposing changes to standard container sizes that might lead to intermodal inefficiencies, and, at the 1987 conference in Seoul, pursuing the issue of compensation recoverable by ports for their costs in dealing with wrecked or disabled vessels.

The latter edition of the conference saw IAPH strengthen its international relationships with a resolution to conclude an MoU with the Customs Cooperation Council (CCC), founded on the basis of significantly assisting authorities in the gathering of information and combating customs fraud, in particular drug smuggling.

In 1994, the CCC adopted the working name of the World Customs Organisation and the organisation continues to be a significant partner for IAPH to this day, producing definitive guidance that, in the spirit of that 1987 agreement, strengthens each organisations’ understanding of the other’s tasks and priorities, for the betterment of global trade.

1988 – 1992

Connecting and protecting

As the 1980s drew to a close, IAPH’s work reflected a period of increasing digitalisation and environmental stewardship. In 1989, the Association’s conference returned to the United States for the first time in more than a decade. That April, 700 delegates from 66 countries gathered at the Fontainebleau Hilton Hotel in Miami Beach under the theme of ‘The Intercontinental Connection.”

This focus on connections was appropriate, as the world was becoming increasingly networked, thanks to the rapid growth in digital technology. The conference program included discussions on electronic data interchange (EDI) systems, emphasising the importance of utilising technology to enhance port efficiency.

While the Miami event marked the longawaited return of the conference to the United States, the Association itself had helped organise a major event in the country just half a year earlier – it contributed $20,000 towards the organisation of an IMO Workshop on the Environmental Impact Assessment of Port Development, held in Baltimore.

This organisational focus on the environment carried through to the 1991 edition of the conference, held in Barcelona with the support of His Royal Majesty King Juan Carlos I of Spain. The event saw the passing of a resolution on the environment, focusing on three key areas: environmental planning and management, dangerous goods, and water pollution impacts on port development and operations. The association recommended that each member port include “an environmental as well as an economic context” to its operational decision making.

The resolution would lead to the creation of IAPH environmental guidelines that were introduced at the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Earth Summit in 1992. Foreshadowing the technical visits of the present-day conference, sessions at the Barcelona edition also took place aboard Eugenio Costa – a masterpiece of 1960s cruise vessel design – and involved visits to ports in the Balearic Islands. This would have proven an attractive element of the conference programme – but then, what better way to remind delegates of their collective duty to the marine environment than to provide them with a dazzling reminder of its beauty?

1993 – 1995

Sustainability and resilience

In the mid-1990s, two of the modern association’s core themes – climate and energy and risk and resilience – were thrust to the forefront of the agenda at the IAPH Conference, in ways that still resonate today. The 1993 edition was held in Australia, with an opening ceremony at the world-famous Sydney Opera House.

Following on from the introduction of IAPH guidelines at the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Earth Summit the year before, the conference passed a resolution on ship’s port fees, asserting that “members of IAPH should consider incentives […] including the possibility of adopting a Scheme in which environmentally friendly equipped and operated ships are encouraged in the structuring of port tariffs and fees.”

Notably, by the following January Rotterdam Municipal Port Management began to reduce port dues by 10% for tankers with segregated ballast tanks. These first moves toward a program of port incentives for environmentally friendly shipping would one day be formalised in an IMO-recognised global scheme: the Environmental Ship Index (as of 2020, an IAPH initiative).

In June 1995, a case study of remarkable resilience was presented at the 19th edition of the conference, hosted by the ports of Seattle and Tacoma. The year had begun with news of the Great Hanshin Earthquake that devastated

the city of Kobe. Masaaki Eguchi, director general for the Port of Kobe, addressed the delegates. He noted that – although port facilities suffered US$11bn in damage – urgent reconstruction work had made it possible to rapidly accommodate ships transporting water, food, medical and relief goods. Relief goods from the Port of LA were transshipped from Nagoya to assist the recovery.

On 20 March, two months after the disaster, full-scale container handling resumed and the first ship departed, bound – appropriately – for Seattle. Kobe was a candidate to host the IAPH Conference for the first time in 1999, but had to withdraw following the disaster. A quarter of a century on, the city has finally been able to fulfil that vision.

1996 – 2000

Setting the stage for Y2K

While the early 1990s saw IAPH take the lead on maritime sustainability, in the latter half of the decade the association turned its attention to topics of global interest: the transformative effects of the dot-com boom and the unquantifiable risks of the Y2K problem.

In 1997, IAPH returned to London, England for the first time since 1965, where the Port of London Authority again hosted the event. The opening ceremony took place at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre on June 1 (weeks ahead of the venue’s official opening); proceedings from the conference notably included a demonstration of the new home page of the first official IAPH website, as well as the introduction of the IAPH 2000 Special Task Force. The mission of this group was to “allow IAPH to better respond to the needs of its members at the turn of the new millennium”.

Conclusions were presented at the 1999 Conference, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. “The Information Age is upon us and we have already seen and experienced numerous changes in the way we do things,” Malaysian prime minister Dr Mahathir observed in his keynote speech at the event, hosted by Port Klang Authority. “Our economic well-being depends on our ability to adjust to and apply the new technologies.”

A resolution was passed pertaining to “the vulnerability of the maritime transport industry to the consequences of potential Electronic Date Recognition (EDR) failures prior to, on or after 1 January, 2000” and it was agreed to encourage implementation of the IMO’s Y2K Code of Good Practice among members.

The new IAPH website provided links to relevant Y2K sites and a webpage for ports to report any noticeable bugs as the millennium began. Thankfully, a series of identical responses was recorded by member ports as 1 Jan 2000 arrived around the world. From Auckland to Bintulu, the message was the same: no problem.

2001 – 2004

Strengthening port security

With Y2K having passed without incident for the world’s ports, IAPH looked to the new century with optimism, reflected in the playful theme of its 22nd conference: 2001: A Maritime Odyssey. Held in May, the conference returned to Montreal for the first time in three decades.

Forward-looking topics on the agenda included “the World Economy at the Dawn of the Third Millennium”. Yet, less than four months later, any preconceptions about the future were upended by the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. The response from the maritime sector was swift: the IMO launched comprehensive measures to strengthen counter-terrorism efforts at sea, including amending conventions, convening specialised conferences, and establishing dedicated working groups.

Ports were seen as potential areas of vulnerability and port authorities as key stakeholders. In December 2001, a letter was sent from the IMO secretary general to his counterpart at the IAPH, requesting cooperation on counter-terrorism measures. A year later, Special Measures to Enhance Maritime Security were adopted into SOLAS with major implications for ports from July 2004 onwards, under the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS) Code.

These included security assessments for port facilities, the implementation of Port

Facility Security Plans and the strengthening of port facility security, including access control and installation of surveillance equipment. IAPH’s support for these sweeping changes (and its membership of a World Customs Organization Task Force on Security and Facilitation) were reported at the 2003 conference – the first ever IAPH conference to be held in Africa.

Despite the impact of SARS, the Durban event, held May 26-30, was well attended by a hard-working and united group of port professionals. In an age of renewed uncertainty, the IAPH looked both to the future (with conference proceedings provided on CD-ROM for the first time) and to the past – as its 50th anniversary loomed.

celebrations

IAPH’s Golden Jubilee year began with a celebration in Tokyo on 14 January 2005. Some 400 delegates were present at the event, which commemorated the association’s milestone achievements (with a congratulatory address from Japan”s minister of land, infrastructure and transport) but also provided a moment for solemn reflection on the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami, which took place less than a month earlier.

The association also responded to the disaster by encouraging members “to develop guidelines on effective preparedness for natural disasters to mitigate their consequences.” Following further Europe/ Africa anniversary celebrations in London in March (hosted by the Port of London Authority), IAPH held its annual conference in Shanghai in May.

The agenda called for strong infrastructure expansion and highlighted the centrality of ports to China’s goal of becoming a global trade and manufacturing hub. Green policies were also on the agenda, and this would only increase by the next edition of the conference, which returned to Houston in 2007. As secretary general Satoshi Inoue observed in Ports & Harbors, the documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” had increased awareness of the problem of global warming; “Ports have a responsibility to tackle global warming,” Inoue opined, adding that “the way forward needs to be systematic, as a

one-size-fits-all solution won’t take account of different air-pollution levels”.

For IAPH, that solution came in the form of the IAPH Tool Box for Port Clean Air Programs, a digital planning tool developed by the Port Environment Committee, chaired by Geraldine Knatz of the Port of Los Angeles. The initiative was launched at the Houston conference, alongside the unanimous adoption of a resolution on clean air programs. Such efforts showed that prog ress was being made on many fronts – as did the election of the association’s first female president, O.C. Phang.

2008 – 2011

From WPCI to ESI

As the 2000s ended, IAPH continued to focus on environmental care, even as the Great Recession buffeted the industry. “We should not allow rough economic weather to blow us off the course of sustainability,” urged secretary general Satoshi Inoue in Ports & Harbors magazine, as 2009 began.

He was reflecting on the launch of the World Ports Climate Initiative (WPCI) in Los Angeles two months previously. WPCI was designed for the global port community to work together to tackle climate change via six lead projects, including one focused on indexing all vessels calling at ports based on emission performance.

These ambitious goals were discussed at the 2009 IAPH conference, hosted by the Port Authority of Genoa in May. In an echo of the forthcoming Kobe conference, the programme focused on balancing sustainability ambitions against economic upheaval, culminating in the unanimous adoption of the Genoa Resolution urging ports to invest in productivity and tackle climate change through the WPCI. The gala dinner was staged in the magnificent Palazzo Ducale, the Palace of the Doges of Genoa, where soprano and baritone singers performed.

The following conference, hosted by Busan Port Authority in early May 2011, took place in the shadow of the devastating Great East Japan Earthquake two months earlier.

Appropriately, it included a resolution to donate US$10,000 from the association’s general accounts to the IAPH Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.

The event saw two other critical resolutions, the first on the Safety of Containers in the Supply Chain – pressing for requirements for shippers to correctly pack and document cargo, including the mandatory accurate weighing at the origin of the shipment. The other urged members and non-members to join the recently established Environmental Ship Index (ESI), a scheme that used port incentives to encourage environmentally friendly shipping. WPCI was making significant progress and its chair, Geraldine Knatz of the Port of Los Angeles, was unanimously elected the 29th IAPH president.

Smart ports and smart choices

In May 2013, IAPH made a triumphant return to the place where the association was established: the 28th edition of its biennial ports conference was held in Los Angeles. This was the scene of the association’s founding, and of the second International Ports and Harbor conference in 1955.

Nearly six decades later, a different set of topics dominated the global maritime agenda. This was the era of shipping alliances – as operators sought partnerships to combat rising fuel costs and excess capacity – and of integrated port operating companies expanding into terminal operations. Mega ships were proliferating, the automation of port equipment was on the increase, the IMO continued to strengthen environmental regulations, and ports and vessels moved to accommodate the increased use of LNG as a fuel.

Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) also introduced the smartPORT concept, showcasing intelligent port management that balanced business needs with environmental protection. This concept formed the theme for the 2015 conference, which HPA hosted (for the second time), in June. At the conference, a familiar face, Santiago Garcia-Milà (deputy executive director, Port of Barcelona), succeeded Grant Gilfillan, the CEO of Port Authority of New South Wales, as IAPH president.

Crucially, a redrafted constitution was presented for approval, covering the composition of the IAPH council, election processes and the categorisation of IAPH’s regions. Meanwhile, the equally critical topic of climate change remained on the agenda in Hamburg, and later that year in Paris where, at COP21, the association presented a 2020 action plan – “Navigating a Changing Climate” – created with the global waterborne transport association PIANC. IAPH also presented the results of the first five years of ESI’s operations, backing its words with actions.

2016 – 2019

The birth of the World Ports Sustainability Program

Fresh from adopting a new constitution –intended, in the words of the IAPH president, to “give the organisation a relevant role in global maritime and transport affairs” – the IAPH convened in Bali in 2017 for its 30th conference.

Amid discussions of emerging shipping lanes, special economic zones, and port innovation, further organisational and strategic changes were confirmed at the Indonesian edition of the event. It was announced that the scope of the World Ports Climate Initiative (WPCI) would be extended from climate action to cover a full range of sustainable port development challenges facing the industry, guided by the 17 UN Strategic Development Goals.

The new initiative, known as the IAPH World Ports Sustainability Program (WPSP), was officially launched in Antwerp during a two-day international conference in March 2018 with the participation of the IMO secretary general,

the Queen of Belgium and maritime industry leaders. By this time, IAPH had enacted a significant constitutional change: the appointment of its first managing director, Patrick Verhoeven.

The association’s newly established award scheme for projects submitted to the World Ports Sustainability Program resulted in 60 entries from ports around the world flowing into the new online database portal. The awards were bestowed at a gala dinner during the following edition of the conference, in Guangzhou, China in May 2019.

This celebration was the capstone to an extremely well-attended conference, featuring a strong focus on trends in future global trade, including the effects of the Belt and Road Initiative and the leading role of the Chinese Internet economy.

The stage was set for further changes, this time to the organisation and the timing of the conference itself.

2020 – 2021

Adapting to the pandemic

As a new decade dawned, IAPH’s flagship conference underwent arguably the most significant set of changes since its inception: rebranded as the World Ports Conference from 2020, it would henceforth be organised by an events company working with IAPH, rather than by the host port – now the host sponsor.

The conference also moved from biennial to annual. Although there had been mid-term conferences since the 1960s, the new frequency and commercial arrangement was intended to create a consistent high-level content-based networking experience for delegates.

The new IAPH World Ports Conference was due to be held in March 2020 in Antwerp, Belgium and it attracted 450 registrants. Yet, with only weeks to go, it had to be cancelled due to the pandemic lockdown in the country. Undeterred, the association reimagined the conference as a five-day television broadcast for a remote audience, and rescheduled it to June 2021. It was trailed by an innovative programme of webinars exploring the impact of the pandemic on ports and supply chains; this series set the standard for IAPH’s present series of Harbor Café events and pre-conference sustainability webinars.

The association worked to convene and connect industry expertise for the greater good, by means of a taskforce of members across the globe, who met online to tackle the

pandemic and its impact on port operations and the global supply chain. This period also saw the creation of the Port Economic Impact Barometer Report – the precursor to the IAPH World Ports Tracker – with the involvement of Professors Thanos Pallis and Theo Notteboom.

The revised digital edition of the World Ports Conference combined live events from the Antwerp Port House, with scheduled and recorded C-level keynotes, debates, demonstrations and one-on-one interviews to great success, attracting 600 participants, as Captain K. Subramaniam, general manager of Port Klang Authority assumed the association’s presidency.

Even in the face of a pandemic, IAPH pledged that the show must go on.

Making

changes, sharing expertise

As IAPH moved to reschedule its conference, while expanding its membership outreach channels and social media engagement, significant institutional changes were also afoot within the organisation. It was reorganised around a set of three leading technical committees and it also saw the organisational incorporation of the Environmental Ship Index (ESI); the IAPH Insider biweekly newsletter also made its debut.

Meanwhile, the unique working circumstances of the pandemic continued to encourage the creation of essential publications to support industry development, with IAPH’s Cybersecurity Guidelines for Ports and Port Facilities published in September 2021.

That year also saw the completion of a reform and rebranding process that covered the World Ports Conference, the bi-monthly Ports & Harbors member magazine, and the mother brand of IAPH, culminating with an upgrade to the association’s website. Following the reimagining of the Antwerp edition of the IAPH World Ports Conference as an online event, the following Vancouver edition was rescheduled to May 2022.

With the gradual lifting of lockdowns, this represented the first time that members had met face to face since the Guangzhou conference of 2019. The event, which was opened

with a video message from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saw the presentation of the results of a global supply chain stakeholder engagement exercise and roadmap on how to “Close The Gaps” in global port infrastructure, undertaken in collaboration with the World Bank, as well as the conference debut of the Port Endeavor business game, launched the previous year.

The first IAPH World Ports Tracker report was later published, followed by the full Close the Gaps report and, shortly after that, the Risk and Resilience guidelines. It was a period of high energy and industry for IAPH.

2023

Leading the energy transition

The growing influence of IAPH’s cross-sectorial endeavors was reflected in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the IMO in July 2023. Signed by IMO secretary gen eral Kitack Lim, IAPH president Captain K. Subranamiam and IAPH managing director Patrick Verhoeven, the MoU agreed to closer collaboration on climate change, energy transition, digital transformation, trade facilitation and risk and resilience capacity building between shipping and ports. During his tenure Kitack Lim had strived to closely involve ports in the work of the IMO, resulting in the very first Ports Resolution on facilitating maritime decarbonisation and the introduction of the Maritime Single Window.

A few months later, the IAPH World Ports Conference came to the Middle East for the first time in 2023, and attracted nearly 700 delegates. The Abu Dhabi event, hosted by AD Ports Group, was held in late October and early November, one month before the UN’s COP 28 climate conference in Dubai.

Appropriately, energy transition was the major focus of the conference, with speakers and delegates discussing the technical and financial challenges of producing, storing, transporting

and distributing low- and zero-carbon fuels, as well as the need to forge partnerships with the energy and finance sectors and with government.

Notably, the UAE was one of the five first governments to back the Clean Energy Marine Hubs (CEM-HUBS) initiative that had been created by IAPH and ICS, and launched in late 2022. IAPH’s collaborations with its institutional partners continued to bear fruit and the conference saw the introduction of both the Guidelines on Cooperation between Customs and Port Authorities (created with the World Customs Organization) and a first look at the forthcoming Port Community Systems –Lessons from Global Experience, created with the World Bank following 24 months of effort from 88 contributors.

The latter offered port communities a step-bystep guide to implementing a port community system (PCS). Digital transformation was also a significant theme at the event, with tools for energy and operational efficiency, as well as cyber security, a major topic of conversation. Excitingly, the year concluded with the agreement of a new media partnership to propel IAPH and its flagship conference into the future.

Tools for future fuels

The IAPH World Ports Conference returned to Hamburg in 2024, less than a decade after its most recent visit, but it could scarcely be said that the ports faced a similar operational environment or priorities. The secretary general of the IMO, Arsenio Dominguez, assured the assembled port professionals that progress was being made on whether, and how, to price emissions from global shipping and that the ports sector was being listened to in that process.

Meanwhile, the development around IAPH’s various sustainability tools and initiatives continued at admirable speed. The event saw the integration of the World Ports Climate Action Program (WPCAP) into the IAPH Climate & Energy technical committee. It also saw the launch of the first digital version of the Port Readiness Level for Marine Fuels (PRL-MF) self-assessment tool created over a two-year period following work by the IAPH Clean Marine Fuels (CMF) Working Group, WPCAP and Mission Innovation’s Zero Emission Shipping Mission.

The conference, hosted by Hamburg Port Authority – where IAPH president Jens Meier is CEO – was another great success. MSC chief executive Soren Toft summarised the situation best when he reflected on how the efficiency and productivity of the ports sector would help to build a more resilient and sustainable industry – helping to serve vessels more effectively.

“I think ports are sometimes undervalued in the supply chain,” he observed, “but we really value the work that you do.”

IAPH’s work programme had certainly altered significantly following the constitutional changes of 2016, with managing director Patrick Verhoeven leading a European team that had taken responsibility for policy, strategy, communications and business development. With a formal address in London through a partnership with British Ports Association, the team works in close cooperation with the team at the Tokyo office, which is responsible for finance and membership administration.

2025

Returning to IAPH’s roots

70 years after its official founding, the stage is set for IAPH to return to the city where the associations’ story began: Kobe, the site of the first International Port & Harbor Conference.

Located between the Rokko mountain range and the Seto inland sea, this historical port city has been embracing foreign cultures since the 9th century, giving the city a unique international flavor. Kobe has been a major international trading port since 1868 and boasts an eclectic mix of Japanese and late 19th century Western architecture. It is home to 1.5 million people from more than 130 countries.

2025 marks three decades since the Great Hanshin Earthquake that caused such extensive damage to Kobe and the surrounding areas – this year’s World Ports Conference will therefore act as a showcase of the remarkable recovery and resilience of the port.

Famous for its high-quality beef, delicious sake and historic hot springs, Kobe has always been a city of many Japanese “firsts” and IAPH is a part of that proud tradition. This was the historic location where Japanese and American port professionals proposed a motion to create a new, permanent international association for ports around the world.

Seven decades later, it is an idea that retains unanimous support.

The World Ports Sustainability Program

Inaugurated in March 2018 by HRH Queen Mathilde of Belgium at Antwerp’s dockside, the IAPH World Ports Sustainability Program (WPSP) was established with the aim of demonstrating global leadership of ports in contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations by integrating them into their businesses and operations.

IAPH members began to contribute information about their projects online to the WPSP website. Seven years later, the WPSP portfolio has become the world’s most detailed

and up-to-date global database of portre lated projects on sustainable development. At the time of publication, it lists 516 projects from 195 ports in 71 countries.

Through the WPSP portfolio, ports and their partners worldwide raise awareness of their ongoing work on sustainability, share their know-how and provide inspiration to other ports, many of whom have implemented similar projects based on fellow members’ experiences.

The IAPH Sustainability Awards

First established at the IAPH 2019 World Ports Conference in Guangzhou, China, the IAPH Sustainability Awards celebrates the very highest quality port-sustainability projects from around the world submitted to the World Port Sustainability Program (WPSP) database.

Each year, these project submissions are initially judged by an independent expert jury from the maritime industry, academic institutions and UN agencies, who score and select three top submissions emerging across each of the six categories which correspond with the six WPSP key areas of interest: Digitalisation, Infrastructure, Health Safety and Security, Environmental Care, Community Building, and Climate and Energy. These then get taken to a public vote online on the WPSP portal with the result counting for thirty percent of the final scores.

At the annual Gala Conference dinner during the World Ports Conference, IAPH celebrates the diversity and quality of the different winning projects from the numerous ports from around the world – including the Akiyama memorial award for runner-up projects from Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States.

The Port Endeavor game

Fully launched in October 2021 following digital gameplaying during global lockdown, the Port Endeavor game was conceived at a workshop organised by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva in March 2019 as a way of showcasing the projects being submitted by ports to the World Ports Sustainability Program (WPSP).

Following two years of development, the first in-person gameplays were launched in Antwerp and Gijon by IAPH and its two main development partners – UNCTAD TrainForTrade and APEC (Antwerp/Flanders Training Center), part of Port of AntwerpBruges International.

The game compels players to make decisions on sustainability that port managers make in real life, bearing in mind strategic

goals, limited budget and the need to foster resilience to respond to unpredictable events. Content is based on the WPSP projects, bringing the content of those initiatives to life and being rewarded by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as points, as well as bonus points from the WPSP Areas of Interest.

The game has been enjoyed by thousands of port professionals, students and CEOs alike from all continents of the world, with constant updates of content and a new hybrid version that allows many more people to take part.

In 2023 the UNCTAD TrainForTrade team were nominated with the game as finalists for the UN Secretary General’s Award in the category of “UN 2.0 – Quintet of Change”.

Afterword

In 2025, IAPH celebrates its 70th anniversary. And in this memorable year, the World Ports Conference will be held in Kobe. This is very significant in two respects.

In 1922, our Ports and Harbours Association of Japan (PHAJ) was established in Dalian. Since then, anniversary events have been held every 10 years. And seven years after the end of the Second World War, the 30th anniversary general meeting was held in Kobe in 1952.

Then, as a commemorative project for the 30th anniversary, the first World Ports Conference was held, with invitations sent to port officials from overseas. This international conference was realized under the strong leadership of Gaku Matsumoto, the then-chairman of PHAJ, and Chujiro Haraguchi, the mayor of Kobe. The meeting was successful and three years later in 1955 the second World Ports Conference was held in Los Angeles.

Matsumoto states in the 1952 issue of the journal of PHAJ: “I hope for the establishment of an international conference, as an organization for researching and discussing all international issues related to ports.” This wish was realised in the form of the establishment of the IAPH in 1955 at the Los Angeles conference.

The other significant point is that 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the Great

Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, which caused devastating damage to Kobe. Now, 30 years later, both the city and the port have achieved a remarkable level of recovery and redevelopment. Kobe had originally been considered as a candidate venue for the IAPH conference in 1999, but it had to abandon this ambition due to the effects of the earthquake. I am truly pleased that the World Ports Conference is finally returning to Kobe.

Finally, I would like to mention the Japanese Foundation for IAPH. In the early 1970s, the exchange rate system shifted to a floating rate system, and the oil crisis triggered prices to soar. Therefore, the financial situation of IAPH – which had its headquarters in Japan – deteriorated rapidly and the idea of establishing the Japanese Foundation for IAPH was proposed. After various discussions, representatives of IAPH and the Foundation signed an agreement in 1973 and the support system was established. This Foundation has continued to support the financial aspect of IAPH, ensuring the independence of the association.

This 70th anniversary commemorative book details these important episodes in the life of the association. I believe it offers a glimpse into the history of IAPH over the past 70 years very well, along with the efforts and passion of those involved.

Dr Takashi Owaki President of the Ports and Harbours Association of Japan and the Japanese Foundation for IAPH.

Joint Declaration by IAPH and Port of Kobe

at the World Ports Conference Kobe 2025

We, IAPH and Port of Kobe, hereby declare as follows in Kobe, the venue of the World Ports Conference 2025, commemorating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the International Association of Ports and Harbors.

In 1952, the world’s first international conference dedicated to port cooperation was held in Kobe, marking a significant milestone in the pursuit of global port collaboration. This pioneering event led to the establishment of IAPH in 1955.

We affirm that IAPH guided by the enduring philosophy of “World Peace through World Trade; World Trade through World Ports” has steadfastly carried out its mission for over 70 years. However, we are confronted with a reality in which sustaining global trade has become increasingly difficult today, due to a range of pressing challenges such as geopolitical instability, climate change and natural disasters.

We pledge to carry forward the legacy of our predecessors and to tirelessly pursue the sharing of information and mutual cooperation among members, in order to safeguard stable global trade and world peace. In Kobe, the place where it all began, we reaffirm our dedication to advancing the sustainable development of the global port and maritime industries through this endeavour.

Jens Meier President of IAPH

Kizo Hisamoto Mayor of Kobe

9 October, 2025

Production credits

Editorial: Fumiko Yamaji, Nick Blackmore, Victor Shieh.

Design: Kevin Freeman at Optimus.

Printed by Daikosha Printing Company, Tokyo.

Publication date: October 2025

Special thanks go to the generous financial support from the Ports and Harbours Association of Japan and the Japanese Foundation for IAPH for making the production of this history possible.

Find IAPH online

International Association of Ports & Harbors www.iaphworldports.org

World Ports Sustainability Program sustainableworldports.org

World Ports Conference www.worldportsconference.com

Environmental Ship Index environmentalshipindex.org

“World Peace Through World Trade World Trade Through World Ports”