Former Director of Cabotage at the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Onwuka Igwe, has explained that the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) was introduced as a strategic initiative to develop indigenous manpower and strengthen Nigeria’s capacity to effectively take over coastal shipping within the Nigeria’s maritime space.
Igwe explained that the programme was conceived to build sufficient indigenous manpower to eventually eliminate the need for waivers granted to foreign operators in Nigeria’s coastal waters.
He said the expectation was that once adequate local capacity has been developed, reliance on foreign personnel in the country’s Cabotage trade would cease.
In his forthcoming book, “Nigerian Cabotage Law and Practice,” Igwe, said the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) was conceived by NIMASA as a strategic response to the shortage of skilled indigenous manpower in the maritime sector.
He noted that the programme was designed to train Nigerian seafarers across various areas of shipping and maritime trade, while addressing the growing challenge posed by an ageing seafaring workforce in the country.
Igwe disclosed that the NSDP has so far produced nearly 2,500 young Nigerians trained in various disciplines of maritime trade and shipping at leading maritime academies across the world.
According to him, the beneficiaries are expected to provide the critical manpower needed to operate vessels engaged in Nigeria’s Cabotage trade, thereby strengthening indigenous participation and reducing reliance on foreign seafarers.
He said: “The Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme is a project strategically designed by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency to train seafarers in various departments of shipping and maritime trade.”