The SA Agulhas embarked on a new research and training pilot programme last week, following its refurbishment in the Port of East London’s Princess Elizabeth dry dock.
The vessel is carrying on its decks the first group of 20 deck and engine rating trainees and three cadets, who will be gaining practical sea-time towards their international seafaring qualifications.
According to the South African International Maritime Institute (Saimi), the new training programme is aimed at growing the pool of employable seafarers and contributing to skills development in the country.
“It addresses the gap for career opportunities,” said South African Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) chief operating officer, Sobantu Tilayi. “Young people will be able to find jobs in areas such as maintenance of the vessels, in rigging and deploying equipment, and handling and securing cargo.”
He said that the current trainees were among 45 candidates chosen for the new programme – offered by the South African Maritime Training Academy and the Sea Safety Training Group – which was funded by the Transport Education Training Authority (Teta).
“The project expands Teta’s involvement in maritime sector education and training at a practical skill level and is a positive for the maritime sector,” said Teta maritime education training and development practitioner, Malcolm Alexander. “It also grows the pool of South African seafarers available for local and global employment.”
The trainees will be sailing along the coast to Cape Town, on charter to the SA Environmental Observation Network, in order to retrieve data from a number of scientific buoys deployed to monitor the Agulhas current and its role in climate change.
