The Sierra Leone Maritime Administration (SLMARAD) has achieved its strongest performance to date in the latest Paris Memorandum of Understanding (Paris MoU) Flag Performance List, moving the country’s ship registry significantly closer to attaining the prestigious White List status.
The latest rankings, which came into effect on 1 July 2026, are based on Port State Control inspections and vessel detention records covering the 2023–2025 assessment period. They represent one of the international maritime industry’s most respected benchmarks for evaluating the safety, quality and regulatory performance of national ship registries.
According to the latest assessment, the Sierra Leone Flag recorded 172 Port State Control inspections and only 10 detentions, resulting in an Excess Factor of 0.33. The performance reflects sustained improvements in fleet quality, regulatory oversight and compliance with international maritime standards.
Compared with the previous assessment period, Sierra Leone successfully reduced the number of vessel detentions while maintaining a similar level of inspections, demonstrating continued progress in strengthening the country’s maritime regulatory framework. The latest results place Sierra Leone ahead of several established registries on the Paris MoU Grey List, including Thailand, the Philippines, Egypt and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
Under the Paris MoU methodology, reducing the total number of vessel detentions by just four during the three-year assessment period would have been sufficient to move Sierra Leone onto the White List, underscoring the country’s remarkable progress in recent years.
Commenting on the achievement, SLMARAD Technical Manager Alexandros Stylianou said improving Port State Control performance requires consistent technical oversight, disciplined fleet management and a long-term commitment to quality.
He noted that the latest results demonstrate the effectiveness of the measures introduced by the Administration, adding that they have strengthened confidence in the Sierra Leone Flag within the global shipping industry.
SLMARAD stated that it has continued to strengthen its technical oversight through enhanced fleet monitoring, compliance verification and a sustained focus on quality management. Those initiatives form part of the Administration’s broader strategy to improve fleet performance while providing shipowners with efficient and professional flag administration services.
The Administration’s Business Development Manager said the organization’s ambition extends beyond improving its international ranking. He explained that SLMARAD remains committed to providing shipowners with a reliable and efficient flag administration that promotes safe operations and full compliance with international maritime regulations while continuing efforts to achieve White List status.
The Paris MoU White, Grey and Black Lists classify flag administrations based on their safety and compliance records over a rolling three-year period. The rankings are widely used by shipowners, charterers, insurers and maritime stakeholders worldwide to assess the quality and credibility of national ship registries.
