The port of Antwerp is to offer training for port professionals in India as of February this year, with courses given in a specially equipped training centre. Temporary facilities are being used at the moment, until the new centre is ready, the company said in its press release.
The Memorandum of Understanding outlining the conditions for this collaboration was signed on Thursday 12 February at a ceremony in the Indian city of Mumbai in the presence of Marc Van Peel, Antwerp port alderman, and Eddy Bruyninckx, CEO of Antwerp Port Authority. The two Antwerp representatives each presented an introductory lecture about the port of Antwerp, as a foretaste of the teaching syllabus.
The series of lectures is being organised by APEC, the international port training and education centre. Since it was first set up 37 years ago APEC has trained more than 14,000 port professionals from 150 countries. The courses cover subjects such as port management, infrastructure development & maintenance, and safety and ISPS-related aspects. The course material on offer to the Indian port sector is currently being analysed in detail so that the courses can be precisely tailored to the requirements. The Jawaharal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), the largest container port in India, will initially be the main customer for the APEC training programme. The Indian port has set itself the target of handling 10 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units, i.e. standard containers) by as early as next year. By comparison, the port of Antwerp handled just under 9 million TEU last year.
The first series of lectures will be given in the week of 23 February for 30 or so port professionals. The lectures will initially be held in temporary facilities until the permanent premises are ready for the JNPT APEC Port Training Centre. The training centre will ultimately be located in JNPT port, although professionals from other Indian ports are welcome to follow courses there. In addition courses will be organised in Antwerp as part of this collaboration.