With the aim of increasing the employment rate in Ghana, the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) has rolled out a “Go-to-Sea Campaign” targeted at junior and senior high school students
According to the GMA’s Director of Maritime Services Nana Kwabena Boakye-Boampong, there is a lack of awareness in the possibilities of a maritime career in the country. Most university hopefuls tend to oversubscribe to popular courses where employments are highly competitive and not guaranteed.
On the other hand, seafaring careers were rewarding and provided opportunities for diversity in land and sea jobs as differing technical abilities, certifications and experiences were needed. He hopes, with the introduction of this new campaign, it would increase interest in seafaring in youths and boost the economy and employment rates.
All set to support increase in workforce
To ensure that youths are duly enticed, the GMA has already taken steps to ensure that there are adequate jobs for everyone. In February 2022, the GMA signed a memorandum of understanding with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency of the United Kingdom, which recognizes the certificates of competency (CoC) issued by both countries. This would mean that Ghana seafarers would be eligible to work on UK-flagged vessels and other red-ensign vessels.
At present, Ghana has about 5,000 registered seafarers and the GMA has agreements with 36 countries. Director Nana Boakye-Boampong is confident that the steps the GMA had taken to entice youths would encourage them to enroll at the Regional Maritime University to study seafaring related courses.
Source:
Graphic Online
Crewing Online Media Team
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