IMO Council Backs Second Term for Secretary-General Dominguez

The IMO Council has voted to extend Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez's mandate for a second four-year term running from 1 January 2028 to 31 December 2031. The decision, announced on 4 November during the Council's 138th session in London, now goes to the IMO Assembly for formal approval when it convenes in late 2027.

Council Chair Victor Jimenez of Spain congratulated the Secretary-General on behalf of the 40-member Council and confirmed the two-step approval process. For shipping lines, port operators and national regulators, the continuity matters: the IMO's top post sets the pace for the regulatory calendar that carriers must plan fleet investments and compliance spending against.

Who is Arsenio Dominguez?

Dominguez is the tenth Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, the UN agency responsible for the safety of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution by ships. The IMO Council, which comprises 40 Member States, first elected him at its 129th session in July 2023 for a four-year term beginning on 1 January 2024.

His initial election was ratified by the IMO Assembly at its 33rd session in December 2023. The Assembly is the organization's highest decision-making body, meeting periodically with all Member States represented, and its endorsement is required before any Council recommendation on the Secretary-General becomes final.

What did Dominguez say?

Addressing the Council after the announcement, Dominguez struck a note of continuity and gratitude. "I am deeply grateful to the Members of the Council and all Members of the Organization for their continued trust and support," he said. He added: "I remain committed to following your guidance and contributing to our collective efforts in support of global shipping and seafarers."

The wording signals the tone shipowners and seafarer welfare groups can expect from his continued tenure: an emphasis on collective decision-making among Member States and on the workforce that crew's the world's merchant fleet.

Why does a second term matter for the industry?

An eight-year stretch under one Secretary-General, spanning 2024 through 2031, gives the IMO a stable hand at the top during one of the most consequential regulatory periods in modern shipping. Decisions taken in this window will shape how carriers order tonnage, how ports invest in bunkering infrastructure, and how forwarders' customers absorb compliance costs across trade lanes.

For ship operators, leadership continuity at the IMO typically reduces the risk of abrupt policy reversals between administrations. It also means the negotiating positions staked out by Member States during Dominguez's first term — and the working methods he has established at London headquarters — are likely to carry through the remainder of the decade.

The formal seal comes only in late 2027, when the Assembly gathers. Until then, Dominguez continues to serve his first term, which runs through 31 December 2027, meaning the transition to a second mandate would occur without a gap on 1 January 2028.