Section 288: Interpretation of this Part

For thepurpose of this Part of this Act-
"Convention Country" means a country, the Government of which is a party to the Load Line Convention and which has not denounced that Convention, or a territory of such country to which the Convention extends and remains extended;
"existing ship" means a ship which is not a new ship;
"fishing vessel" means a ship used for catching fish, or other living resources of the sea;
"International voyage" means a voyage between:
(a)
a port or place in Nigeria and a port or place outside Nigeria; or
(b)
a port in a Convention Country (other than Nigeria) and a port in any other country or territory of the country (whether or not a Convention) which is outside Nigeria, so however, that in determining the ports between which voyage is made, no account shall be taken of any deviation by a ship from its intended voyage which is due solely to stress of weather or other circumstances that neither the master nor the chatterer, if any, of the ship could have prevented or forestalled;
"Load Line Convention" means the International Convention on Load Lines 1966 and any amendments thereto which the Minister may, by Order declare to be in effect for Nigeria;
"Load Line Convention ship" means an international Load Line ship belonging to a country to which the Load Line Convention applies;
"Load Line Regulations" means the regulations made by the Minister to give effect to the Load Line Convention;
"Load Line ship" means:
(a) an international Load Line ship, that is to say, an existing ship of not less than one hundred and fifty tons or a new ship of twenty-four metres or more in length which carries cargo or passengers on international voyages; and
(b) a local Load Line ship, that is to say, a ship, other than an international Load Line ship, which carries cargo or passengers;
"new ship" means a ship whose keel is laid or which is at a similar stage of construction on or after-
(a) in the case of a ship registered in or flying the flag of a country other than Nigeria which is a Convention country, the date from which it is declared that the Government of the country has ratified or acceded to the Load Line Convention, or that it is a country to which that Convention applies;
(b) in the case of any other ship, the date of the coming into force of this Act