AFRICAN COUNTRIES URGED TO ADOPT MANILA AMENDMENTS TO STCW

African member countries have been urged to immediately take steps towards the ratification of the Manila Amendments to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) Convention to ensure that their seafarers remain internationally competitive. The adoption of the amendments would assist countries bring their training procedure in line with current developments in the industry.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of a regional seminar on the familiarisation with the 2010 Manila amendments to the Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping Convention and Code in Lagos on Monday, the Minister of Transport, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman, said there was need to partner with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to ensure the effective implementation of IMO instruments in Africa. He cautioned that it is only through effective understanding and implementation of IMO instruments that shipping could be safe, secure and environmentally friendly, and hinged on human element.

The Minister represented by the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Mr Temisan Omatseye, stressed that African maritime countries need to develop human capacity in line with modern technology, adding that seafarers’ roles in shipping development was very crucial to the survival of the maritime sector. “We can develop the best technologies, build the best ships but without the human beings (seafarers) who man these vessels under difficult conditions, our efforts will be in vain. As a consequence therefore, IMO sees the aspect of human element in shipping as crucial for the survival of the shipping industry. It is therefore appropriate that proper training and certification of the men and women in whose hands world trade relies on, has been given the pride of place by the IMO.”

The IMO this year invited member countries to Manila in July need to bring the STCW Convention up to date with developments in the shipping industry. The amendments relate to new provisions which are meant to ensure consistency in the interpretations of the regulations among maritime and safety administrations. It was identified that a major challenge confronting many administrations, especially in the developing countries was the issue of certificate verification. Thus it has become increasingly difficult for some administrations to respond to enquiries from other administrations to verify certain certificates presented to it.

The Minister said the problem revolves around the lack of a specific point of contact or automatic mechanism to respond to such verifications. “I have therefore taken up the challenge to establish within the administration, a web-based automatic system through which enquiries regarding certificates issued by the Nigerian administration could be verified. This will involve uploading all issued certificates onto a dedicated window on website of the NIMASA, as the responsible agency, so that all enquiries are automatically verified without recourse to personal contacts. This will ensure efficiency in the administration and would give effect to the amended regulations”.

The five day seminar hosted by Nigeria in partnership with the IMO attracted participants and representatives from the region’s IMO member states of Cape Verde, Cote D’ Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, the Gambia, Ghana, Namibia, Sao Tome and Principe and Sierra Leone. The Manila amendments to the STCW Convention and Code were adopted on 25 June 2010, are set to enter into force on 1 January 2012 under the tacit acceptance procedure.