In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-
"accommodation"
means any space intended for the use of persons, including passengers who normally live on board a vessel, and includes the galley, storage space for provisions, toilets and washing facilities, laundry facilities, landings and gangways, but not the wheelhouse;
"authorised employee"
means an employee of the Port Administrator empowered to perform any functions in relation to which the expression is used;
Act 18 Inland Water Transport Act 2021
"bareboat"
means a boat or vessel hired without crew, stores or bunkers;
"bareboat charter"
means a shipping agreement for hiring or leasing of a vessel for a period of time during which a vessel owner provides only a vessel while the charterer provides the crew with the stores and bunkers and pays all operating costs;
"cargo vessel"
means a vessel which is not a passenger vessel;
"certificate of competency"
means a certificate issued to a person by the Maritime Administration or a competent authority of a foreign State which entitles the person to be employed in the capacity stated in the certificate;
"certificate of foreign registry"
means a certificate possessed by a foreign vessel issued by a competent authority in the State of origin of a vessel;
"certificate of registration"
in relation to a vessel, means the certificate of registration of a vessel issued by the Maritime Administration under this Act;
"currency point"
has the meaning assigned to it in Schedule 1;
"dangerous goods"
means goods that, by reason of their nature, quantity or mode of stowage are either singly or collectively liable to endanger the lives of the passengers or imperil a vessel, and includes all substances classified in the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code) or any International Maritime Organization (IMO) publication as dangerous goods for carriage on inland waterways, and any other substance or article that the shipper has reasonable cause to believe might meet the criteria for such classification;
"distressed member of the crew"
means a member of the crew or an apprentice found in distress by reason of having been shipwrecked, discharged or left at a port or place other than the port of engagement;
"equipment"
in relation to a vessel, includes everything or article belonging to or used in connection with, or necessary for the navigation and safety of a vessel;
"existing vessel"
means a vessel other than a new vessel;
"fishing vessel"
means a vessel used for or intended to be used for or in connection with fishing but does not include a vessel used or intended to be used for fishing, other than for profit or a vessel used or intended to be used wholly for the purpose of conveying persons wishing to fish for pleasure;
"freeboard"
means the distance measured vertically downwards, amidst vessels, from the upper edge or the deck line to the upper edge of the related load line;
"grain"
includes millet, wheat, maize (corn), oats, rye, barley, rice, pulses, sesame and seeds;
"home port"
means the port of registration of a vessel or the place at which a vessel is habitually kept when not on voyage;
"inland waterways"
means any lake or navigable portion of rivers in Uganda;
"licence"
means a licence issued under this Act;
"life-saving appliance"
includes lifeboat, lifebuoy, life jacket or life-raft used to protect human life at sea;
Act 18 Inland Water Transport Act 2021
"load line certificate"
means an international load line Certificate or local load line certificate issued under section
100
;
"Load Line Convention", means the International Convention on Load Lines, 1966;
"logbook"
includes official logbook, deck logbook or engine room logbook;
"marine casualty"
means any casualty or accident involving any vessel other than a vessel exempted by this Act, that occurs upon the inland waterways;
"maritime"
means the transportation of goods or passengers on waterways;
"Maritime Administration"
means the department responsible for maritime safety and security in the Ministry responsible for transport;
"maritime curriculum"
means a curriculum developed for study of seafarers;
"master"
means a person having command of a vessel;
"mate"
means a person second in command to a person in charge of a vessel;
"member of the crew"
means a person employed in any capacity on board a vessel;
"Minister"
means the Minister responsible for transport;
"navigation mark"
means a lighthouse, beacon, busy traffic oo
separation scheme mark, vessel routing mark and any mark used for navigation;
"near shore limits"
means the limits of a lake measuring ten nautical miles from the nearest shoreline;
"new vessel"
means a vessel the keel of which is laid, or is at an equivalent stage or production after the commencement of this Act;
"official logbook"
means the logbook required to be kept under section
68
;
"oil mixture"
means any substance containing any oil having an oil content of more than fifteen parts per million by volume;
"open waters"
means areas of inland waterways within which the conditions are such that it is appropriate to apply the highest standards of safety to vessels operating on inland waterways;
"owner"
means the registered owner of a vessel and includes the agent of the owner and in the case of a vessel which is the subject of a charge or hire-purchase agreement, the person in possession of a vessel under the terms of that agreement;
"passenger"
means any person carried on a vessel except-
(a)
a person employed or engaged in any capacity on the business of a vessel;
(b)
aperson on board a vessel, either in pursuance of the obligation laid upon the master to carry shipwrecked, distressed or other persons, or by reason of any circumstance that the owner, master or the charterer, if any, would have prevented or forestalled; and
(c)
achild under one year of age;
"passenger vessel' means a vessel which is constructed for, or which is habitually or on any particular occasion used for carrying more than twelve passengers and includes a vessel provided for the transportation or entertainment of lodgers at any institution, hotel, boarding house, guest house or other establishment;
(a)
a vessel, including a dive boat, which at the time it is used is- (i) _ wholly owned by an individual or individuals and used only for the sport or pleasure of the owner or the immediate family of the owne r; or
(ii)
owned by a body corporate and a person usi.._ it is an employee, officer or shareholder of the body corporate, or a member of his or her immediate family;
(b)
a vessel on voyage or excursion and the owne r does not receive any payment for or in conne ction with operating a vessel or carrying any person, other than a contribution to the direct expenses of the opera tion of a vessel incurred during the voyage or excursion; or
(c)
any vessel wholly owned by or on beha lf of a club formed for the purpose of sport or pleasure, which is used only for the sport or pleasure of the memb er of the club or the immediate family of the memb er, and for the use of which any charges levied are paid into club funds and applied for the general use of the club;
"port"
means a place or area ona lake or river designated as such by notice and includes an inland port;
"Port Administrator"
means a person responsible for managing and maintaining a port;
"port of engagement"
means a port at which a member of lthe to crew is employed by an owner or master of a vesse work on board a vessel;
"port of registry"
in relation to a vessel, means the port at which tered; a vessel is registered or is provisionally regis "private port" means an inland port owned and operated by a private person;
sa "proper return port" in relation to a member of the crew, mean port agreed upon at the time of his or her discharge;
"receiver of wreck"
means the receiver of wreck designated under section
127
;
receive "reception facility" means facility at the port used to noxi shipboard residues and mixtures containing oil, ous liquids or garbage;
"rescue co-ordination centre"
means a unit resp onsible for promoting efficient organisation of search and rescue services and for coordinating the conduct of search and rescue operations within a search and rescue area; personnel "rescue sub-centre" means a unit composed of trainedexpe and provided with equipment suitable for the ditious conduct of search and rescue operations;
Act 18 Inland Water Transport Act . 2021 "salvor" a person engaged in salva ge of a vessel, life or cargo lost in inland waterways;
"seafarer"
means a person who fulfil ls the conditions to be employed or engaged in any capacity on board a vessel;
"small vessel"
means a vessel of less than 25 gross tons and not more than 3 metres in length;
"surveyor"
includes any person or company designated under section
87
;
"tanker"
means a cargo vessel constructe d or adapted for the carriage of bulk inflammable liquid cargo;
"vessels of traditional build"
mean s dug outs and canoes constructed of wood;
"vessel"
includes every description of water craft, including non-displacement craft and seaplanes, used or capable of being used as a means of navigation on water;
"wages"
includes emoluments;
"wheelhouse"
means the space in which all the equipment necessary for navigating and controlling a vessel is installed;
"wreck"
includes flotsam, jetsam, lagan and derelict found in or on the shores of the inland wate rways, the whole or any portion of the vessel lost, abandoned , stranded or in
Act 18 Act Inland Water Transport 21 distress, any portion of cargo, stores or equipment of the vessel, and any portion of the personal property on board a vessel which is lost, stranded, abandoned or in distress, and includes, when found in the inland waterways or on the shores of the inland waterways-
(a)
goods which are cast into the lake and sunk and remain under water;
(b)
goods which are cast or fall into inland waterways and remain floating on the surface of the lake;
(c)
goods which are sunk into inland waterways, but are attached to a floating object in order that they may be found again;
(d)
goods which are thrown away or abandoned; and
(e)
a vessel abandoned without hope or intention of recovery.
