Despite ongoing concerns over unsafe and environmentally damaging shipbreaking practices, in 2024, 80% of the global vessel tonnage scrapped—totaling 255 out of 409 dismantled ships—was broken under substandard conditions on the beaches of South Asia, Belgian NGO Shipbreaking Platform has found.

Notwithstanding the grave consequences for workers, with nine people losing their lives and another 45 suffering injuries, local communities and vulnerable coastal ecosystems, Bangladesh remains the shipping industry’s go-to choice for scrapping, followed by India and Pakistan, the NGO said.