THE TITO MELLA FOUNDATION
Fundación Ramón E. Mella (Don Tito), Inc., is a non-profit organization created with the purpose of propelling the development of the maritime and ports sector at every level within the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean Region.
After being legally constituted in 2010, the foundation has been promoting activities within the country in benefit of said sectors. By doing so, it has boosted the Dominican Republic’s progress, promoting knowledge in areas such as maritime law, maritime administration, fishing, natural resources, fostering the training of everyone involved in order to improve the quality of those services and improving employment for all Dominicans.
Fundación Ramón E. Mella (Don Tito’s) specific objectives are:
a) To establish a training center specialized in the maritime and ports services.
b) To continue Mr. Ramón E. Mella (Tito)’s work in benefit of the maritime and port sector national and internationally.
a) To promote and divulge the areas of knowledge within maritime law, law of the sea, port law, maritime administration and natural resources protection.
MASTER'S DEGREE IN MARITIME LAW
As part of their effort to further develop maritime knowledge within the Dominican Republic, E & M International Consulting and Fundación Tito Mella are working alongside La Universidad Apec (UNAPEC), one of the Dominican Republic’s leading universities, in order to create and teach a Master’s in Maritime Law.
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The Dominican Republic’s geographical location, rapidly growing economy, and open market places it on a privileged spot.
However and unfortunately its maritime and port sector’s legal frame is composed by a number of archaic, obsolete and sometimes even contradictory laws, which hinder its chances to become a maritime powerhouse.
MARITIME CODE PROJECT FOR DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
The Preliminary Bill that would create the Dominican Maritime Code, was officially presented during the First International Maritime and Oceanographic Conference, held on the 21st and 22nd day of May of the year 2015, organized by the Dominican National Authority of Maritime Affairs (ANAMAR) by its Spanish acronym), after two-years of negotiation with the main governmental institutions involved in Shipping.
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The presentation of the Bill was made by the expert maritime lawyer Mrs. Lludelis Espinal, whom alongside with Messrs. Félix Fernández and Carla Fernández, members of the Law Firm E&M International Consulting, Commercial, Maritime and Legal Consultants, drafted, revised and amended the project of Bill during the negotiations phase with the Public Offices involved in the Shipping Industry in the Dominican Republic.
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The Bill is a response to the need of updating and modernizing the Dominican maritime commerce, which has remained without any significant modification as from the years 1800 to date.
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We trust the final approval and the implementation of a Maritime Code Act will increase and facilitate the shipping and trading in the Dominican Republic, which for sure will benefit the development of our country and continue reducing the poverty of our Nation.
MARITIME ARBITRATION SEMINAR
Promoting training and creating job opportunities for professionals in the national maritime and port sector, the Santo Domingo Chamber of Commerce and Production and the Ramón E. Mella Foundation (Don Tito Mella) have organized the First Seminar on Maritime Arbitration.
This Seminar, which will feature international speakers, will cover the issue of maritime arbitration from the perspective of the law of the United States of America and England; Likewise, an overview of the maritime trade situation in the Latin American and Caribbean region will be presented.
EXECUTIVE SEMINAR ON PORT DREDGING
The Tito Mella Foundation in collaboration with the Navy of the Dominican Republic,
the Piedroba Group of Consultants and the Inter-American Commission on Ports of the Organization of American States CIP / OAS in its commitment to strengthen the training and modernization capacities of maritime and port trade, have organized the first "Executive Seminar on Port Dredging", which is oriented not only to the management of the dredging project, with all the technical challenges that it implies, but also to the entire process from the hiring of professionals, personnel management, what should and should not be done, delegation of responsibilities, types of contracts, diversity of teams, among others.
