IMO Secretary-General Role Given to Arsenio Dominguez Velasco
The appointment of Arsenio Antonio Dominguez Velasco as the secretary-general commencing on January 1, 2024, was officially certified by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Assembly.
On November 30, the 129th session of the Council was conducted by the IMO Assembly to approve this resolution unanimously.
Starting off his tenure on January 1, 2024, Velasco is set to serve as the secretary-general for an initial four-year term, concluding on December 31, 2027. With his appointment, he became the organization's tenth chosen secretary-general.
During the Assembly, departing secretary-general Kitack Lim gave Velasco a thorough briefing document as a symbolic act of transition and succession. Lim pledged to work with Velasco to ensure the handover goes smoothly and successfully.
In his speech to the Assembly, Velasco stated: “You have my full commitment to build on the great work that has been done by my predecessors, taking what is already a significant and influential organization to be an institution that will thrive in delivering its full agenda, from safety to decarbonization, from digitalization to the human element; an International Maritime Organization that not only looks towards the future but does more in embracing change, diversity, inclusion, and transparency; one that is dedicated to its people, from all the very professional staff that form the IMO Secretariat, to our seafarers worldwide and perhaps most importantly, a dedication to the younger generations, the ones we are obliged to hand over to, to hand over a planet that is a better place to live in.”
He ended his speech with words: “I want to reiterate how much I’m looking forward to leading IMO, to continue working with all of you, an extraordinary group of people who have demonstrated time and time again that we can deliver by listening and understanding each other, sharing our aims and concerns. I’m very lucky to start with a great team of professionals in the Secretariat who also want what is best for the Member States and all our stakeholders.”
Velasco, currently the director of IMO's Marine Environment Division, has been part of the IMO Secretariat since 2017, previously serving as the chief of staff to Kitack Lim. In 2020, he assumed the director role for the Administrative Division within the Organization.
In 1996, he set off on his nautical career, working as a port engineer at Panama's Armadores del Caribe. He later took on the assistant manager position at Braswell Shipyard, where he worked specifically on drydock operations.
In 1998, Velasco relocated to London to take up his position as the director of the Panama Maritime Authority's Technical and Documentation Regional Office for Europe and North Africa. Later, he assumed more duties inside the organization as Panama's representative, and from 2014 to 2017, he served as Panama's ambassador and permanent representative to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which was the apex of his career.
Throughout this period, Velasco presided over the IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC). He oversaw the Technical Committee at the 25th IMO Assembly session in 2015. In addition, he presided over the IMO's Maritime Safety Committee's Working Group on Maritime Security, Piracy, and Armed Robberies.
Velasco's birthplace is Panama, in Central America. His Bachelor of Science degree from the Fermin Naudeu Institute in Panama was awarded to him in 1988. Following that, he completed his studies in Naval Architecture at the University of Veracruz in Mexico in 1995. In the UK, Velasco also holds an MBA from the University of Hull and a Certificate of Higher Education in European Politics and International Law from Birkbeck University.