The government of Maurtius initiated a five-day training session on bunkering and shipping industry, with emphasis on safety and pollution prevention, on April 24th, in Bagatelle.
The initiative is a result of the DDS Knowledge Centre’s collaboration with Lloyds Register Marine, Dubai, aiming to provide training to 14 company directors and managerial officers involved in the petroleum and logistics industry, so as to better acquaint them with the different elements of the sector.
Speaking at the opening of the ceremony, the Minister of Labour, Industrial Relations, Employment and Training, Mr Soodesh S. Callichurn, recalled that in a bid to make Mauritius a high income economy, the Government has strong ambitions for the enhancement of the harbour of Port Louis, with a potential development of the bunkering industry in the country, in order to make it a leader of the sector in the Indian Ocean.
The bunkering industry, according to Minister Callichurn, is an innovative sector that offers tremendous employment opportunities adding that if young Mauritians are given the necessary training and tools, they can excel in this field and they can further be trained to replace foreigners currently working in the local bunkering sector. He expressed his optimism that the youth can eventually be encouraged to seek employment overseas.
Given that his Ministry has a mandate for training, Mr Callichurn pointed out that he will ensure that the DDS Knowledge Centre Ltd collaborates to offer greater training ventures in this field with a view to secure further possibilities of employment both locally and internationally for Mauritian youth. He called for more collaboration between the private and public sectors for the implementation of such training programmes.
Except for the need for fully trained personnel with pollution prevention awareness in the sector, in order to handle with oil spills, the speech also highlighted the need for a sound safety culture, in the wake of piracy and terrorism incidents.
