By Stephen Ubanna
More facts have emerged why the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, under the cloe watch of Bashir Jamoh, OFR, and Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG, subsidiary, Ship Management Limited, SML, have agreed to train Cadets of the Nigerian Seafarers Development Program, NSDP.
This is because the NSDP is an intervention programme implemented by NIMASA to develop a pull of Labour for the nation’s maritime industry as obtained in the West African country of Sierra Leone, Asian country of ingapore and other maritime nations across the world.
The NIMASA, Chief Executive Officer, CEO, who was said to have seen 2023, as a year of new beginnings in the nation’s maritime industry with the creation of the ministry of Marine and Blue Economy by the present Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who incidentally was a former governor of Lagos state, the nation’s Commerial centre, had said that it will the country ‘’navigate successfully to steer the maritime sector to greater heights in 2024’’.
This is evident with the training of Cadets of NSDP, Cadets , which the Maritime Regulatory agency helmsman had said that Cadets certified as seafarers in the training program with global recognition and acceptance , would go a long way to bridge the gap in the dearth of seafarers in Nigeria and globally as well.
As a prelude to ensuring that Nigeria produce recognized and acceptable seafarers world-wide, may have informed why the agency had signed an agreement with NSML, a subsidiary of NLNG, ‘’to facilitate Certificate of Competency , CoC, examinations for beneficiaries of the NSDP, are recognized and accepted globally.
There is no gain saying the fact that the , CoC examination’’ is the final stage of the NSDP training’’, that would culminate in the acquisition of the CoC operating license which potentially opens the doors of global employment opportunities for the NIMASA and NSML trained NSDP Cades.
The good news is that most of the NSDP Cadets who had been trained based on the NIMASA and NSML working agreement had earlier been sent to India an Asian country, Greece and Belgium, both European countries to be trained as Licensed Deck, Engine Officers, and Naval Architects.
The NIMASA boss had repeated said that that the agency is working closely with countries that are committed to an understanding of mutual recognition of CoC, issued to Nigerian trained seafarers. Only recently, at an induction ceremony by NSML for 50 of the agency ‘s Rommania trained NSDP beneficiaries, the NIMASA , CEO, who could not hide his feelings had was said to have highlighted the success of the collaboration between the maritime agency and NSML in fostering the development of Nigeria seafarers.
Although , the NMASA Director General was conspicuously absent at the induction ceremony in Lagos, but he was said to have been represented by Ischei Osamgbi, the agency Director, Special Duties, who may have spoken his mind as he noted that ‘’NIMASA sincerely appreciates NSML for their leadership and promotion of the country’s local content on board their vessels.
He confirmed that a good number of NSDP Cadets trained onboard NSML vessels have been gainfully employed by the company.
An elated Jamoh, who spoke through Osamgbi, the agency Director of Special Duties, stated that they are sending another batch of 150 NSDP Romania –trained NSDP Cades who have concluded their mandatory onboard sea training and are ready to proceed for the CoC training and examinations.
He had alluded to the fact that the signing of the partnership agreement with NSML, had resulted in the commencement of the sponsorship of CoC for the first batch of the Romania trained Cadets. He asserted that the Romania trained NSDP Cadets will go a long way in ensuring that all backlogs of Cadets awaiting CoCs are cleared’’.
He was said to have used the opportunity of the induction of the 50 NSDP Cadets by NSML to urge other Organisations in the nation’s maritime Industry ‘’to take a cue from the NSML and give opportunities to aspiring Nigerian seafarers to acquire knowledge and gain experiences to excel in the field.
Magdalene Ajani, Permanent Secretary, ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, who was said to have been represented at the event by Mrs. Ekanen Saila, a Deputy Director from the ministry noted that the collaboration between NIMASA and NSML was ‘’a welcome development and the outcome of discussions which have been on for some time’’.
Abdulkadir Ahmed, Managing Director , NSML, may have gladdened Nigerians’ mind when he disclosed that the company is sponsoring the 50 of the NSDP Cadets to the south Shield Marine School in the United Kingdom, UK, FOR A 12 mont programme to get their Certificates of competency required to trade on vessels globally.
He had corroborated what the NIMASA Director General claims that the partnership between the parties was aimed at addressing the dearth of Nigerian seafarers on ocean going vessels and the need to meet indigenous manning requirements in Coastal and Inland shipping , Cabotage.
He had described the training programme for the NSDP Cadets in UK as ‘’a gold standard in maritime training ‘’, stressing that with the Certificate of Competencies, ‘’the Cadets will become qualified seafarers and working on any oceangoing vessel globally’’.
Ahmed, the NSML, Managing Director, was said to have told those that cares to listen that the company’s support in the training of the NIMASA NSDP Cadets back to back ‘’ is really in Coordinating and ensuring that they come out with good Certificates of Competency and to ensure they have a career in the global shipping maritime sector’’.
He is optimistic that with the emerging transition in the shipping and maritime industry , such as in energy and ecarbonisation , which requires bringing in new technologies , ‘’it is important that seafarers in Nigeria continue to upgrade their skill sets and train on new technologies to be abreast of new developments’’.
