The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, Koji Sekimizu, has announced he is to step down from the post when his first term ends at the end of 2015.
In his blog on the IMO website he states that he will not be seeking reappointment in December next year due to personal reasons related to the health of his wife.
The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, Koji Sekimizu, has announced he is to step down from the post when his first term ends at the end of 2015.
In his blog on the IMO website he states that he will not be seeking reappointment in December next year due to personal reasons related to the health of his wife.
“I would like to retire from IMO at the end of the current term which expires at the end of 2015. I will not seek reappointment. This is because of my desire to ensure my support to my wife, who has a serious health issue, and I would like to ensure that, when needed, I could give more time for her care and support for her immune system problems.”
He said her problems had flared up in March and April and this has caused him to compromise his travel schedule with the IMO. Although she was now recovering, she needs continuous healthcare.
“My core reason for not seeking reappointment is that if she becomes unwell again in the future, that could affect my duty and responsibilities and I may have to compromise my work in order to ensure her care.
“I am sure that are a number of highly-qualified people who can replace me and lead the Organization towards the future. But nobody can replace me to take care of her.”
He added that until his retirement he would continue to put all his time and effort into the IMO.
Discussion about this post