FG urged to provide training vessels to give cadets seatime experience
THEFederal Government has been charged to provide training vessels to accommodate the large number of cadets produced by maritime institutions in the country for seatime opportunities.
This comes as stakeholders in the shipping industry decried the large number of cadets that have remained unemployed due to lack of sea time training experience, especially as shipping companies require high skills and competencies to function.
This was made known when the Alumni Association of Federal College of Fisheries and Marine Technology ( FCFMT), in collaboration with the Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research ( NIOMR), sponsored 87 students on free basic mandatory cadet training.
Ten exceptional students of the college were also given free scholarship to advance their studies in India.
Speaking at the presentation of Certificates in Lagos, the President of the Alumni association, Captain Williams Ogunsakin, informed that the certification is in fulfillment of the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping ( STCW) basic mandatory training on
Security Awareness, Seamanship and Fisheries Resources Management.
According to him, it is a basic requirement for all cadets to serve onboard a ship, noting that the certification is globally accepted and not limited to Nigeria, while renewable after five years.
Ogunsakin also informed that a non- governmental organisation, Tetra Foundation, has signed a Memorandum of
Understanding ( MOU) with the government of India to train Nigerian students on free scholarship.
He noted that five exceptional students each from the Nautical and Marine Engineering departments are now beneficiaries of the scholarship.
While lamenting the unavailability of ships for providing seatime opportunities for the students in the country, Ogunsaki called on the government to float a
National Carrier, which will enhance human capacity development among seafarers in the country.
“It is quite unfortunate that Nigeria does not have ships to accommodate the cadets for their seatime. We cannot leave the job in the hands of the school authority alone. We are ready to work with the school and make sure that the school excels. We shall be a pacesetter for other maritime institutions in Nigeria,” Ogunsakin concluded.