Ministry of Maritime Affairs (Pakistan)

The Ministry of Maritime Affairs, previously known as the Ministry of Ports and Shipping, is a Federal Ministry of the Government of Pakistan. The current Minister for Maritime Affairs is Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh and the current Federal Secretary for Maritime Affairs is Zafar Ali Shah. The longest-serving Federal Secretary for Ports and Shipping are Muhammad Saleem Khan and Rizwan Ahmed. The Ministry is headquartered in Islamabad and its main attached departments are in the port city of Karachi.

Hierarchy
The Ministry is headed by the Maritime Secretary of Pakistan. Keeping in view its close links with the seaports, a division of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs is established in Karachi which includes a number of attached departments/organisations each headed by a high-grade civil servant or bureaucrat.

Wings and attached departments

 * Government Shipping Office
 * Karachi Port Trust
 * Korangi Fish Harbour
 * Marine Fisheries Department
 * Mercantile Marine Department
 * Pakistan Marine Academy
 * Pakistan National Shipping Corporation
 * Gwadar Port Authority
 * Port Qasim Authority
 * Ports and Shipping Wing, Karachi

History

 * Before 2004, Ports and Shipping was a subject and part of the Ministry of Communications.
 * In 2004, the Ministry of Ports and Shipping emerged as a separate and independent Federal Ministry of the Government of Pakistan.
 * In October 2017, the Ministry was again restructured and renamed as Ministry of Maritime Affairs.

Role of Ministry
The Ministry officials look over the administrative and policy matters of the Federal Ministry including policies, procedures, rules and regulations. Apart from that, the attached wings and departments established in Karachi deal with their respective domains under the administration of the Federal Ministry of Maritime Affairs.