Northport, Maldives Ports Ltd ink strategic collaboration agreement
SHAH ALAM: Malaysia’s largest integrated logistics service provider Northport (M) Bhd has signed a strategic collaboration agreement (SCA) with Maldives Ports Ltd (MPL) to establish a sister port relationship and strategic cooperation.
The SCA was inked by Northport’s chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Azman Shah Mohd Yusof and MPL’s CEO Shahid Ali during an online signing ceremony on Nov 9, 2021.
Azman Shah said the SCA has sealed both parties’ commitment to cooperate in facilitating trade between both ports, especially in promoting Halal trade to cater for the growing demand for Halal certified products.
“There are opportunities in growing the cargo volumes of both ports where the Maldives and Port Klang can be the gateway to trade between our respective continents,” he said in a statement.
On human capital development, he said the collaboration provides a platform for knowledge and skills sharing through Northport International Centre of Excellence (NICE), a centre that provides port training programmes to Northport’s employees, contractors, and port users.
Other than staff secondment
between both ports, there will be technical support sharing on equipment maintenance with knowledge and expertise transfer through an existing pool of highly skilled engineers and technicians.
Shahid Ali said the agreement is instrumental in setting MPL in the right direction by identifying
common areas of collaboration, knowledge transfer across respective business environments and cultures that will provide enlightenment to both organisations.
MPL was incorporated on July 31, 2008, as a fully governmentowned company under the Maldives Companies Act with the key function to ensure efficient management and operation of government-owned ports and port facilities in the Maldives.
It operates Port of Malé, comprising of an Inner Harbour, used by leisure craft, the fishing industry and coastal trade; and an Outer Harbour which caters to larger vessels.