Management
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Maja Markovčić Kostelac – Executive Director
Executive Director Ms Maja Markovčić Kostelac took up the position of Executive Director on 1 January 2019. She is responsible for the running and development of the Agency under the oversight of the Administrative Board.Starting out as a maritime lawyer, she has since gained long-standing experience in the maritime field in both the public and private sector.
Previous to joining EMSA, Ms Maja Markovčić was State Secretary for Croatia’s Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure. Her duties entailed developing strategies, policies and legislation in the area of maritime transport, maritime safety, security and environmental protection. Also in this role, she led the Croatian delegation throughout a range of international forums at the UN, IMO and ILO.
While present at Croatia’s Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure in various capacities including Director of the Maritime Policy Directorate, she has also held the position of Director of the Croatian Shipowners’ Association (Mare Nostrum).
Ms Maja Markovčić Kostelac joins EMSA having become increasingly familiar with the work of the Agency, most particularly as a member of the Administrative Board.
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Manuela Tomassini - Head of Department 1 'Sustainability & Technical Assistance'
Ms Manuela Tomassini is a lawyer by education, specialised in Maritime, EU and International Law. After her degree at the Libera Universita' Internazionale degli Studi Sociali (LUISS) in Rome, she attended the Italian "Scuola Nazionale dell'Amministrazione". In 1994 she joined the Safety of Navigation Division of the Italian Ministry of Transport.She held different positions within the Department of Maritime Transport of the Ministry, with responsibilities in the fields of maritime safety, EU and International Affairs. From 2000 until 2007 she worked as Transport Attache' at the Italian Permanent Representation of Italy to the EU. In September 2007 she started working in EMSA as Policy Advisor and Head of the Bureau of the Executive Director; in 2011 she was appointed Head of Department A 'Corporate Services'. In November 2014 she was appointed Head of Department B 'Safety and Standards'. Since January 2020 she holds the position of Head of Department 1 'Sustainability & Technical Assistance'.
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Peter Kirov - Head of Department 2, Safety, Security, and Surveillance
Mr Peter Kirov is Head of Department 2, Safety, Security, and Surveillance.
He graduated from the Faculty of Law of Sofia University, specializing in International Law and International Relations.
Mr. Kirov held different management positions in the Bulgarian Maritime Administration (BMA) where he gradually developed his career starting as Legal Advisor and having served as Secretary General just before joining EMSA. As Secretary General of the BMA he managed the development of an integrated information system for command and control of emergency response operations, the development of integrated Bulgarian maritime surveillance in the context of CISE, the introduction of the e-government concept in the work of the Bulgarian Maritime Administration and the introduction of ISO 27001 in the work of the administration.
Mr. Kirov has been an Alternate Member of the Administrative Board of EMSA since 2009. He was member of the High-Level Steering Group for Digital Maritime Services and the Committee on Safety of Shipping and prevention of Pollution by Ships since 2007. During his career in the Bulgarian Maritime Administration, he also participated in the work of the Legal Committee, Maritime Safety Committee and the Assembly of the International Maritime Organisation, the work of UNCITRAL related to the development of the Rotterdam Rules and the work of ILO related to the Maritime Labour Convention.
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Leendert Bal - Head of Department 3, Digital Services and Simplification
Mr Leendert Bal is Head of Department 3, Digital Services and Simplification.
Between 2009 and 2019 he was Head of Department Operations at EMSA. This Department covered maritime information services to Member States and EU bodies and operational assistance for pollution monitoring and response. He was Acting Executive Director of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) from 1 December 2011 till 1 September 2012.
He started working for EMSA in 2004 as a policy adviser of the Executive Director, and has been involved within the Agency, as Head of Unit, in developing operational projects such as the network of stand-by Oil Recovery Vessels, the European satellite oil spill monitoring and detection service CleanSeaNet and the EU LRIT Data Centre since their very beginning. He was part of the ESA-EMSA initiative to create a SAT-AIS capability for Europe.
He was previously Transport Attaché in Brussels for the Permanent Representation of The Netherlands to the European Union and has been working for the Dutch Ministry of Transport and Public Works, the Netherlands Institute of International Relations “Clingendael” and the Utrecht University.
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Dominika Łempicka-Fichter - Head of Department 4 'Corporate Services'
Dominika Łempicka-Fichter is Head of Department 4 (Corporate Services) at EMSA. Ms. Łempicka-Fichter holds master’s degrees in law, Maritime Law and IT & Telecommunications Law.
She joined the Maritime Office in Szczecin (Polish Maritime Administration) in 2000, holding positions with responsibilities in the implementation of EU legislation, the coordination of activities related to EU Structural Funds and dealing with IMO, EMSA and HELCOM related matters. Additionally, she was responsible for internal administration.
She was also, on an ad hoc basis, consulting for the IMO and lecturing at the Maritime University of Szczecin.
She joined EMSA in 2005, working initially as a Project Officer for Co-operation with Member States and subsequently as Legal Officer. In 2015 she was appointed Head of Unit of Legal, Finance and Facilities Support and from 1st January 2020 she has been Head of Department, Corporate Services, responsible for administration, human resources, legal and financial affairs, and facilities at EMSA.