IAPH2025 World Ports Conference agenda announced with registration now live – Kobe, Japan, 7 – 9 October

As the Association celebrates its 70th Anniversary, the world ports community will gather in Kobe Japan, where the first ever meeting took place to establish a global ports organisation
The agenda has now been announced and registration opened for the IAPH 2025 World Ports Conference, which will take place at the Hotel Ōkura Kōbe (pictured) on the waterfront at the Port of Kobe between 7 and 9 October.

IAPH Managing Director Patrick Verhoeven commented : “when we speak about the 70th anniversary, it was indeed in 1955 that Japanese and U.S. ports gathered in the Hotel Roosevelt in Los Angeles to establish an international association of port authorities, inspired by the philosophy 'World Peace through World Trade, World Trade through World Ports'. However, the foundation was laid three years before, in Kobe, and that is where we are heading this year later in October. The theme 'Reinvention and Prosperity in Turbulent Times' connects with our founding spirit and will reveal ways in which innovative ports are capturing tangible, sustainable investment returns in a high-risk environment – strengthening both their security and their license to operate.”

The first two days of the conference will be dedicated to plenaries, breakouts and special interventions, all of which will provide insights for delegates to take home with them that can offer added value. This will include new, innovative approaches towards established port business models, revenue-generating strategies, efficiency improvements or the use of technology and partnerships to improve resilience against future shocks. With top level speakers already announced and with many more to come, delegates will also have the rare opportunity to interact with senior executives of the many Japanese ports and terminal operators attending in Kobe, alongside the Japanese Ministry for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

The day after the prestigious IAPH 2025 Sustainability Awards Dinner taking place on the evening of 8 October, attendees will be able to see the port for themselves from both the shore and the sea. Plans include a technical overview and seaborne visit to the Kobe Liquefied Hydrogen Receiving Terminal Hy touch Kobe , and a comprehensive explanation of how the City of Kobe responded to the greatest crisis it ever faced, namely the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake of 1995, with a visit to the Disaster Recovery Center and a tour of the special memorial museum in the port.