No fewer than 486 seafarers who graduated from the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) are gainfully employed and sailing in both coastal and ocean-going vessels.
Dr. Bashir Jamoh, the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), disclosed this on Saturday in his address during the flag off ceremony of the Batch ‘B’ NSDP Terra ll programme, which held at the Naval Dockyard on Victoria Island Lagos.
Giving a breakdown of the number of seafarer enrolment, graduates and those already employed, Jamoh said: “It is important to note that from inception to 2020, the programme has enrolled 2,041 students, while 892 are now licensed deck and engine officers including naval Architects, the rest are in their final stage of the programme.
“It may please the Minister to know that about 486 of the graduates are now gainfully employed and sailing in both coastal and ocean going vessels.”
Jamoh said that the NSDP, serving a strong foundation for seafarer development in Nigeria, provides training opportunity for the students up to degree-level in courses including Marine Engineering, Nautical Sciences and Naval Architecture in some of the best Maritime Training Institutions (MTIs) abroad and to position them to compete effectively in the global Maritime Industry.
Speaking on the Federal Government’s approval to expand the programme with 435 new intakes, the NIMASA Boss said that the programme has also taken advantage of its 12 years’ experience for improvement.
He said the programme has been restructured to consider employment of the best candidates, have a broader spread of beneficiaries across the country as well as select the best maritime institutions offering the three elements of the programme; shore-based training, shipboard training and the certificate of competency), to eliminate delays in securing sea time training berths that was experienced with the previous set of students.
The NIMASA DG expressed confidence that the programme would steadily build seafarer manpower to meet demand for seafarers.
Areas creating job opportunities, Jamoh said, include “the Cabotage regime which requires that vessel engaged in commercial trade and operations in the coastal and inland waters in Nigeria should be manned by Nigerians. The expanding opportunities provided by the Liquefied Natural Gas projects have also been a major boost for manpower demand of the sector.”
He added that “With prospects for the commencement of operations of the Brass LNG, the expansion of the NLNG Trains and the Olokola Gas project, manpower demand for that sector has doubled the existing number.”
In various goodwill messages, stakeholders including the Hon. Minister of Transportation, Mu’Azu Jaji Sambo, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, Chairperson of the Shipowners Forum, Mrs. Margaret Orakwusi, former DG NIMASA, Dr. Ade Dosumu, President General of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju, Chairman Sea Transport Nigeria Ltd., Alhaji Aminu Umar, Chairman Starz Marine Investment, Engr. Greg Ogbeifun, Secretary General of the Abuja MoU, Captain Sunday Umoren charged the newly-admitted NSDP students on the importance and need to be of good conduct, remain focused and be worthy ambassadors as they get to their new training environments.
Meanwhile, the Hon. Minister stated that “The choice of foreign Maritime Training Institutions (MTIs) was mainly based on capacity and certification of the Institutions in the area of maritime training (STCW) by IMO.
“The initiative targeted training globally competitive officers that will erase the unfortunate discrimination that exists between local and foreign trained officers in practice,” he said. He added that: “However, efforts are ongoing in the area of upgrading local Maritime Training Institutions to enable them take up the NSDP trainings in the near future.”
