2023-2023 · global · status: annual summary
The IMO/ILO Joint Database of Abandonment of Seafarers recorded 132 new abandonment cases in 2023 (per ILO tracking), materially higher than the pre-2020 baseline but below the 2020-2021 COVID peak. Panama, Palau, Comoros, Tanzania, and Sierra Leone featured heavily as flag states. Filipino, Ukrainian, Indian, Egyptian, and Turkish seafarers were the most heavily represented nationalities. Fujairah, Suez, Port Sudan, Port Klang, and Bandar Abbas were the top abandonment ports. Ukraine war (Feb 2022) continued to complicate Ukrainian + Russian repatriation. IG P&I A2.5.2 enforcement matured meaningfully during 2023 but persistent gaps remained on smaller-registry tonnage.
132 documented cases; median time-to-repatriation improved to ~6 months from 9 months in 2020.
Resolution / documentation via: IMO/ILO Joint Database