Eurocommissaris Borg krijgt Griekse prijs voor zijn inzet voor het Europese maritieme beleid (en)
IP/09/1881
Brussels, 4 December 2009
Commissioner Borg wins Greek Shipping Award for International Personality of the Year
Joe Borg i, EU Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, has won this year's Lloyd's List Greek Shipping Award for International Personality of the Year in recognition of his outstanding work over the past five years in shaping an Integrated Maritime Policy for the European Union. Mr Borg was praised for his contribution to raising public awareness of the shipping industry and his efforts to ensure that its unique features and economic importance are taken into account within the Integrated Maritime Policy. This is the third honour to have been bestowed upon Commissioner Borg in the past three months for his achievements in furthering the goals of the EU's Integrated Maritime Policy and Common Fisheries Policy.
Commissioner Borg said: "Receiving this prestigious award is an honour for me. More than that, it is a tribute to the commitment and support that the maritime industries have shown for the European Union's Integrated Maritime Policy and to the energy we have all devoted to making the policy work. Shipping is pivotal to Europe's global trade relations and its overall prosperity. The shipping industry has huge potential for innovation and many industry-driven initiatives, to make shipping more sustainable, are already in place. One of the strategic priorities for the Integrated Maritime Policy during the term of the next Commission will be sustainable growth in the maritime sectors and Europe's coastal regions. Shipping and the industries clustered around it will be a driving force behind efforts to generate such growth."
The Greek Shipping Awards, launched by Lloyd's List - the maritime newspaper established in 1734 - in conjunction with the industry, are awarded each year in fifteen categories. The non-pecuniary International Personality of the Year Award honours public figures for their outstanding contributions to Greek shipping, or to the maritime industries in general, during the past twelve months. Commissioner Borg was selected by an independent judging panel from an extensive list of nominees. The awards ceremony will take place in Athens this evening.
Commissioner Borg's nomination for the International Personality of the Year of the Greek Shipping Awards comes just a month after he received the Kungsfenan Swedish Seafood Award for his vital work to make EU fisheries more sustainable (see IP/09/1671 ). In October, he was also awarded the Elisabeth Mann Borgese prize from the Government of Schleswig-Holstein, for his efforts to contribute to the creation of an Integrated Maritime Policy for the EU (see IP/09/1427 ).