LAGOS STATE GOVERNMENT REFUNDS 145 FORMER SUBSCRIBERS OF EGAN HOUSING ESTATE
admin Federal Government in collaboration with stakeholders in the Maritime Industry has commence a three days human capacity development programme for one hundred and twenty seafarers to boost their capacity and ensure safety.
Minister for Marine and Blue Economy Chief Adegboyega Oyetola while declaring the training open at the National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research Conference room on Wednesday said the programme is one of the key policy of the federal government in areas of maritime safety and food security.
The Minister whose speech was delivered by the Executive Director/CEO of the National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research (NIOMR), Professor ABiodun Sule in absentia, implored the trainees to take good advantage of the fellowship for future use.
Oyetola added that his ministry will continue to work with captains of the industry and master mariners in the areas of enhanced maritime and human capacity development for better outputs based on National maritime policies and IMO, FAO, ILO conventions, protocol and instrument which Nigeria is a party to.
Speaking to Journalists at the event, the ED/CEO of NIOMR, Abiodun Sule said the training is the prerequisite to sail at sea, as it will reduce accidents and make them understand what to do in case it happens.
“We brought ourselves together from the industry being sponsored by the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy to bring about 120 people together and develop them so that there will be cleaner oceans and safe seas.
“Our people need the training to reduce accidents to know the procedure what to do in case it happens. It then brings us back to safety which simply means freedom from Danger, you can only free yourself from danger if you know the procedure and if you know what to do and these programs are based on the SOLAS74 as amended and it’s protocol, ISPS, STCW convention. Without this program these our cadets who are graduates of Nautical Science, Maritime Technology, marine Engineering and Fisheries cannot even sail at sea and that is the prerequisite in order for them to get their certificate of competency, ABiodun said.”
The ED/CEO of NIOMR said that the training would be saving the country a whole lot of foreign exchange, as student go to Ghana for the training prior to this.
“You no one thing, we are saving a lot of foreign exchange, our people were going to Ghana when we have so many master marinas and chief engineers who could train them here.
“These are the people who would take over the industry tomorrow, future captains, future engineers, maritime managers, don’t forget the tradition is for them to go to Ghana and pay a lot of money. We are saving a lot of foreign exchange for this government and they are doing it with the support of Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy free of charge, and they are going to get five recognized certificates that can be used WORLDWIDE, he added”
President Nigeria Association of Master Mariners, Captain Tajudeen Alao while commending the program said it has reduced the burden on the students as well as their parents who could not afford the fee for the training.
“Our association really commend this program because it is like giving someone a meal ticket, because the student cannot afford the training before due to the high cost of it. Before you go to sea no matter what profession you are you must have basic mandatory. I told you before that it’s only the deck officers that protect other people on board in term of safety but the law now change that everybody going to sea under STCW78 as amended in 1995 that every body must undergo survival techniques, social responsibilities, firefighting, you must have idea what it takes to survive on board, that is why the training is ensential because if you don’t have the training you can’t go on board.”
