The award recognised Co-Chief Executive
Officer of Tototheo Maritime, Ms. Panayiotou Theodosiou’s leading and pivotal
role in advancing gender equality and empowering women through her tenure as
President of WISTA International.
Ms. Panayiotou Theodosiou said it was a tremendous
honour to have been chosen for the award. “Over
the last 10 years raising awareness of the incredible work women are
undertaking within the maritime industry and the importance of gender
diversity, equity and inclusion have been a key focus for me on both a personal
and professional level,”
she said.
The IMO said Ms. Panayiotou Theodosiou had brought significant attention to
WISTA’s mission, shed light on the challenges faced by women in shipping, and
raised awareness among industry stakeholders and international policy and
decision makers. Her actions had also amplified the voices of women,
highlighting their important contributions to the maritime industries.
Ms. Panayiotou Theodosiou was instrumental in gaining consultative status for
WISTA International at IMO, and the two organisations have since launched joint
initiatives, such as the Women in Maritime Survey 2021 and
the Maritime
Speakers Bureau. The survey, which will be repeated this year,
examined representation and distribution of women working in the maritime
sector. The Speakers Bureau is a platform for female experts across a variety
of maritime fields which seeks to ensure that conferences and events feature
inclusive panels with a range of perspectives.
“During my time as
President of WISTA International it was a privilege to be part of the driving
force behind many of the initiatives related to advancing gender equality
within the industry. When I look at what has been achieved I feel an immense
sense of pride for being able to play a part in bringing about change,” Ms. Panayiotou Theodosiou said.
She extended her gratitude to the
President of the Republic of Cyprus, Mr. Nikos Christodoulides and
Shipping Deputy
Minister, Ms. Marina
Hadjimanolis for supporting her nomination.
The IMO Gender Equality Award has been established to recognize individuals,
irrespective of their gender, who, either in a personal capacity or as
representatives of their institutions, have made significant contributions to
advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women in the maritime sector.
Tototheo Maritime specializes in maritime technology solutions focusing on
optimizing vessel and fleet performance in the fields of satellite
communication, navigation systems, digitalization and end-to-end cyber security
services.