Seafarers told the BBC port authorities routinely demanded bribes of cash, cigarettes and food before allowing ships to pass.
So-called “tipping” violates international anti-corruption laws. However, the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network said it received 5,183 reports in 2023.
The International Ports Association is working on this issue.
Former ship captain Stephen Gudgeon said he was once held at gunpoint after refusing to hand over cigarettes at an Asian port.
“At gunpoint, I was taken to shore and locked up. I was photographed, fingerprinted, questioned by two officials in an empty room with only a chair, and locked up. '' he told the BBC.
“And they said to me, 'Why don't you tell your family about your detention?' They were really quite worried.”
Mr Gudgeon was eventually released after paying a $1,500 (£1,200) fine for paper violations, which he said he believed was retaliation for falsely failing to hand over the cigarettes. The BBC has not been able to contact the port authority in question about the allegations.
MACN told the BBC that since launching its anonymous helpline in 2011, it has received 61,000 calls at more than 1,000 ports in 150 countries.
Cecilia Müller-Torbrand, head of MACN, said that while horrifying experiences like Gudgeon's were rare, the shipping industry was “substantially exposed to the risk of corruption” and that the number of reported incidents was “an iceberg”. “It's probably a corner of the world,” he said.
He said this was due to “a combination of frequent interactions with governments, transportation across multiple jurisdictions, and the time factors associated with entering and exiting ports.”
