International Port Prize for Cartagena and Colombia

• It is the eighth time that the Port of Cartagena receives this award.
• Efficiency, safety, sustainability and capacity, are among the attributes that are evaluated to award the award.
• The Port of Cartagena competes with 36 terminals throughout the Greater Caribbean area for this award.
• The Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA), made up of 34 countries, 15 shipping agencies, 7 intermediary ocean operators, 10 national associations, 37 ports and 15 shipping lines, represent the interests of the shipping industry, maritime transport and international trade.

As part of the closure of the 46th meeting of the Caribbean Shipping Association, held between 17 and 19 October in Trinidad and Tobago, the port of Cartagena was recognized for the eighth time as the best port in the Caribbean, thus ratifying port competitiveness Which has Colombia in the largest center of connections and sea crossings in the world that is the Caribbean.

The award was received on the evening of Wednesday, October 19, by Aníbal Ochoa, coordinator of the commercial area of the Puerto de Cartagena Organization and joins the seven previously received in Barbados 2005, Panama 2006, Dominican Republic 2007, Suriname 2009, Jamaica 2010 , Puerto Rico 2011 and Cartagena 2015.

The manager of the Regional Port Society of Cartagen Alfonso Salas Trujillo said that the recognition is not an organization, it is a country that has believed in port development, a city that with the talent of its people has made maritime terminals Of Port Society and Contecar ones with world-class efficiencies. "These distinctions are a sign that the Colombian port sector is internationally competitive and that our people are able to do their best to distinguish themselves from the best for more than one occasion," Salas Trujillo said.

The award represents the endorsement of more than 100 representatives of the maritime industry and to be awarded by the committee of the CSA evaluated the maritime-port activities of 2015 taking into account reliability and flexibility; Efficiency and productivity; Growth and development; Physical security; health; And environmental safety. This year the CSA compared the performance of the 37 ports that are part of the association and meet the requirements to participate, including having a favorable financial situation.

The new survey validates the strengths of the port of Cartagena, which demonstrated that cargo capacity and export and import handling during the year 2015 reflect its experience in facing the challenges of global trade and taking advantage of opportunities Offered by the Caribbean.

About the CSA Award "Best Port of the Caribbean"

In 1987, the first delivery of the prize for the best port of the Caribbean was carried out with the purpose of promoting the progress and the efficiency of the port operations and in this way consolidate the region as a central point of world trade. In turn, it has served as a major engine for regional ports and terminal operators, encouraging the development of best practices because it recognizes the outstanding actions of ports in the area. This competition has helped several Caribbean ports and terminals to market their services and promote their development and expansion programs to a global audience.

Each year the demands on maritime terminals are greater, new commercial alliances, the inauguration of new terminals, the expansion of the Panama Canal to name a few, represent constant challenges and impose new challenges on the environment, and these parameters reward the CSA with the distinction of Best Port of the Caribbean.

Winners are not chosen based on the size of their port or their terminal. The CSA evaluates the improvement, performance and safety of the different ports and terminals, therefore, any of the participants has an opportunity to win the general prize, or any of the various sectional awards, as long as their business management is To the height and its internal processes reveal a progress. At the end of the process, CSA announces which port of the Caribbean has reached the highest level of operational performance. The guiding principle of the jury has always been: "it is not the great thing but the good that you are".

About CSA

The CSA was created in 1971 to facilitate the development of the maritime industry in the Caribbean in an efficient manner. With 34 countries, 15 maritime agencies, 7 intermediary ocean operators, 10 national associations, 37 ports and 15 shipping lines, the CSA represents the interests of the shipping sector, maritime transport and international trade, and is an important forum for discussing the With the Caribbean, given its importance as a historic route of world trade.

This new award evidences and promotes Colombian competitiveness, considering the current conditions of the international maritime trade.

Fuente: www.puertocartagena.com