The Nigerian Association of Master Mariners (NAMM) has said that the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN) in Oron, Akwa Ibom State is no longer meeting the industry's manpower needs.
President of the association, Capt. Ade Olopoenia who spoke with Shipping Position Daily last week on the celebration of the World Maritime Day, noted that there is need for a holistic approach to Nigeria's maritime education.
The Nigerian Association of Master Mariners (NAMM) has said that the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN) in Oron, Akwa Ibom State is no longer meeting the industry's manpower needs.
President of the association, Capt. Ade Olopoenia who spoke with Shipping Position Daily last week on the celebration of the World Maritime Day, noted that there is need for a holistic approach to Nigeria's maritime education.
The master mariner argued that when it comes to maritime education, Nigeria is not there yet, hence the need for government to sit with stakeholders and find a lasting solution.
The NAMM President frowned at the way the MAN Oron is being run presently, saying that this is a total departure from what it used to be when his set of master mariners were trained.
"I know the way we were trained in those days, this is not there anymore"
"MAN Oron is not meeting our challenges of training, that is why there is need for holistic approach to maritime education in Nigeria, it is not just for one person to establish a programme today and another comes tomorrow to start another"
"We need to sit down, look at all the issues involved and come up with a plan to revive maritime training in Nigeria" he said.
?He took a swipe at the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) being run by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), saying that it is too expensive and cannot be sustained considering the nation's economy.
According to him, the NSDP programme was introduced to serve a purpose initially because of the shortage of maritime professionals, he however lamented that the way it is being run now, it cannot be sustained because it is too expensive and the cadets are not getting practical training.
"There is no way you can sustain such training" he said.
"By now, some of the cadets, we don't know their records if any of them have become an officer, it is not sustainable and we need to get a holistic approach to our maritime education in Nigeria and this is our own position as master mariners" he added.
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