The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) says it has set aside 2.5 million dollars about N375 million to equip maritime training institutions in Africa. Mr. Juvenal Shiundu, the Deputy Director/Head of Programme Management Section, Technical Cooperation Division of IMO who made the disclosure said it was the high-point of maritime activities this week.
Shiundu said in Lagos on the occasion of the World Maritime Day that the fund was to address the deficiency in maritime training, “bearing in mind that 2010 is the year of the seafarer’’.
He said IMO placed a lot emphasis on capacity building through training and support to regional and national maritime training institutions.
According to him, IMO is aware that many of the maritime training institutions in developing countries in Africa, South East Asia, the Pacific and the Central American regions are ill-equipped.
“If Africa is to benefit from the opportunities presented by the envisaged worldwide shortage of seafarers, then the first prerequisite is to develop and build capacities of maritime training institutions in line with global standards.
“There are 13 maritime training centres in Africa, providing training for most of the seafarers in the shipping industry.
“For many years, one of the major identified problems has been the shortage of sea-time training vessels for cadets attending maritime academies in developing countries’’, the newsmen quotes Shiundu as saying.
Shiundu said in Lagos on the occasion of the World Maritime Day that the fund was to address the deficiency in maritime training, “bearing in mind that 2010 is the year of the seafarer’’.
He said IMO placed a lot emphasis on capacity building through training and support to regional and national maritime training institutions.
According to him, IMO is aware that many of the maritime training institutions in developing countries in Africa, South East Asia, the Pacific and the Central American regions are ill-equipped.
“If Africa is to benefit from the opportunities presented by the envisaged worldwide shortage of seafarers, then the first prerequisite is to develop and build capacities of maritime training institutions in line with global standards.
“There are 13 maritime training centres in Africa, providing training for most of the seafarers in the shipping industry.
“For many years, one of the major identified problems has been the shortage of sea-time training vessels for cadets attending maritime academies in developing countries’’, the newsmen quotes Shiundu as saying.