New IAPH Board ratified with Jens Meier appointed President

(Posted on 05/11/23)

IAPH has announced the ratification by the IAPH Council of the new IAPH Board. The Board is formed by the president and six vice presidents, and has general authority to establish broad principles and objectives of IAPH and to make any decision regarding its operation, financing and structure.

Hamburg Port Authority CEO Jens Meier has been elected as President of IAPH for the next two years, and follows the outgoing Captain K. Subranamiam, General Manager of Port Klang Authority, Malaysia. A graduated computer scientist with more than 25 years of experience in the field of port, logistics, IT, and finance, Jens has been serving as CEO of Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) since 2008. His previous professional positions include board positions at Fiege Holding, tts Group, Systematics AG (later EDS), and Software Design & Management AG (Ernst & Young Group).

New Regional Vice Presidents elected for North America and Europe IAPH has elected Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka (first row, third right) as the new regional vice president for North America region, stepping into the shoes of Robin Silvester as outgoing President and CEO of Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. HAROPA’s CEO and Chair of the Management Board Stephane Raison (second row, third right) is the new regional vice president for Europe region, stepping into the place vacated by Jens Meier.

Following elections earlier in the year, the IAPH Council has also ratified the following executives as vice presidents for their regions for another two-year term:

Africa Region : Michael Achagwe Luguje, Director General, Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority

Central and South America Region : José Firmo, CEO, Port of Açu

Asia, South/West, East & Middle East : Masaharu Shinohara, Executive Officer, Kobe-Osaka International Port Corporation

Asia, South East & Oceania : Eranda Kotelawala, CEO, Solomon Islands Ports Authority

Following a benchmark review to further integrate functions to meet the needs of a growing membership base and ambitious work plan, IAPH also has a new organisation chart. Under the co-leadership of the Managing Director Patrick Verhoeven and Secretary-General Masahiko Furuichi, IAPH staff are responsible for technical and policy matters, communications and marketing, membership engagement, as well as finance, legal, and IT. Operational staff are deployed in London, Antwerp and Athens, administrative staff work from the IAPH head office in Tokyo.