New York, USA – Liberia is using its position within the international maritime system to advance a developing-country perspective on the future of global shipping, as Ambassador Robert Wilmot Kpadeh, Liberia’s Permanent Representative to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), says the country is taking an increasingly active role in debates over maritime decarbonization, climate policy, and the economic future of international shipping.
Speaking with Liberian journalist and OK FM talk show host Clarence Jackson on the sidelines of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Thursday, September 24, 2026, Ambassador Kpadeh said Liberia’s maritime diplomacy has moved beyond simply participating in International Maritime Organization meetings to actively presenting proposals and engaging other member states on the future of global shipping.
Kpadeh said Liberia’s position is rooted in its unique place within the maritime industry. The country is both highly dependent on international shipping for the movement of essential commodities and one of the world’s major ship registries, giving it a direct interest in decisions that could reshape the global shipping industry.
“Liberia is not just a member of the IMO. Liberia is a leader,” Kpadeh said during the interview, pointing to Liberia’s participation in IMO committees, its role in advancing maritime policy discussions and its continued engagement with member states.
The Ambassador said Liberia’s increased engagement is reflected in the country’s participation in technical discussions and its effort to present a formal alternative approach to aspects of the IMO Net-Zero Framework.
The framework is intended to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions from international shipping through a global fuel standard and an economic mechanism linked to greenhouse-gas emissions. The IMO has said the measures are part of the organization’s implementation of its 2023 strategy for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions from ships.
Liberia’s intervention focuses on how the transition should be designed and implemented, particularly for developing economies. Kpadeh said Liberia wants climate action to remain ambitious while ensuring that proposed measures are affordable, commercially viable, scalable and capable of being implemented without placing excessive pressure on developing countries.
He said Liberia’s position has gained attention among member states because it is presenting the argument from the perspective of a country directly connected to international shipping and dependent on maritime transportation for essential imports.
“Liberia is making a very practical case,” Kpadeh told Jackson.
He said Liberia is not questioning the reality of climate change or the need to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Instead, the country is calling for a transition that recognizes the economic consequences of major changes to global shipping.
The issue is particularly important for Liberia because much of the country’s international commerce depends on maritime transportation. Petroleum products, food and other commodities enter the country through international trade routes, making shipping costs an important part of the cost of goods reaching Liberian consumers.
Kpadeh said any major increase in shipping costs could therefore have implications for freight rates, commodity prices and food security.
He also linked the maritime debate to the wider development responsibilities of governments, arguing that developing countries must retain sufficient economic space to finance healthcare, education, infrastructure and other public services.
The Ambassador said this is why Liberia is advocating for a step-by-step approach rather than an abrupt transition.
He said the country recognizes that the world must address the climate crisis but believes the international community must avoid creating a situation in which efforts to solve an environmental problem produce severe economic consequences for vulnerable populations.
Liberia’s position comes as international negotiations continue over the details and future implementation of the IMO Net-Zero Framework. Recent IMO working-group discussions have addressed issues including low and zero-emission fuels, fuel certification, greenhouse-gas fuel-intensity calculations, the proposed Net-Zero Fund and support for developing countries.
Kpadeh said Liberia has been engaging countries from different regions and that its argument is increasingly being understood as part of the wider debate about a just and equitable maritime transition.
He said Liberia’s role also reflects the country’s growing participation in IMO decision-making.
According to Kpadeh, Liberia’s maritime representation has become more active in committee-level discussions, including the Marine Environment Protection Committee, while Liberian officials are also working to advance the country’s interests through technical engagement and diplomatic negotiations.
The significance of that role extends beyond Liberia’s shipping registry. It provides the country with an opportunity to raise issues affecting African states, Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States that depend heavily on maritime trade.
Kpadeh said Liberia therefore sees its intervention as a responsibility to its own people as well as to other developing countries facing similar economic circumstances.
“We represent our country at this multilateral front to make the best representation,” he said, adding that Liberia also wants to contribute to discussions affecting the rest of Africa and developing countries.
The debate places Liberia at the intersection of climate policy, maritime commerce and economic development. As global shipping moves toward lower-emission technologies, questions over affordability, availability, infrastructure and access to new fuels will become increasingly important for countries that do not have the financial and technological resources of major industrial economies.
The IMO itself has recognized the importance of support for developing countries. Its working-group process has included provisions and discussions related to technical cooperation, capacity building and financial support for participation by developing countries, particularly Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States.
For Liberia, the current diplomatic campaign provides an opportunity to demonstrate how a developing country can participate actively in shaping international regulations rather than simply receiving decisions developed elsewhere.
Kpadeh said Liberia intends to continue the engagement and use multilateral platforms to explain why the maritime transition should protect climate objectives while also protecting economic stability.
The message from Liberia is that climate policy and development policy must move together. A successful transition, from Liberia’s perspective, should reduce emissions while maintaining the reliability and affordability of global trade and allowing developing countries sufficient room to pursue national development.
As President Joseph Nyuma Boakai leads Liberia’s wider diplomatic engagement during UNGA 81, the maritime discussion adds another important dimension to the country’s international agenda. Liberia is using the New York platform not only to discuss national development but also to advance its position on a global regulatory issue with direct implications for trade, food security, climate policy and the country’s maritime interests.
The engagement highlights the increasingly important role Liberia seeks to play in international maritime affairs, where its voice is connected not only to the size of its ship registry but also to the interests of a developing economy whose people depend on the smooth and affordable movement of goods across the world’s oceans.
