“Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mine worker can become the head of the mine; that a child of farm workers can become the president of a great nation. It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.”
– Nelson Mandela
Dear valued stakeholder it gives me great pleasure to present to you our July 2022 newsletter. My message for this month is very much hinged on the above-mentioned quote by South Africa’s first democratic president, Dr. Nelson Mandela. Indeed, education is the cornerstone of progress in every society on the globe. Education is the key to undoing the locks of the shackles of poverty that arrest so much of our country’s potential.
When, in industry, we speak of unlocking the potential of the oceans economy, this cannot be meaningfully achieved without the meaningful participation of the youth within the maritime industry. It is imperative that we expose the youth to the full spectrum of the maritime industry, sensitise them to the challenges faced by the industry, and foster their development by encouraging and guiding them to come up with solutions that will grow the South African maritime industry.
The Skills Development Unit (SDU) of EMC plays a key role in implementing training and education programmes and interventions, that seek to equip the youth specifically, and generally any member of the public who wishes to venture in the maritime industry. Our interventions include supporting the development of maritime education by capacitating maritime teachers at basic education level, and supporting maritime curriculum development in tertiary institutions.
It is against this background that EMC, in collaboration with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) hosted a Maritime Educators Training Workshop that took place from 11 to 15 July. This annual maritime educators’ workshop is intended to improve the quality of teaching maritime in high schools and align maritime education at basic education level with the knowledge and skills requirements at tertiary education level and at industry level.
Our participation in the 6th of July in the Grindrod Shipping-sponsored inaugural Durban Marine Bursary Golf Day held at Mt Edgecombe Country Club is another indication of our support for interventions that seek to advance maritime education. The bursary currently funds, but is not limited to, beneficiaries from high schools that offer maritime studies such as Sithengile Secondary School, Wiggins Secondary School and JG Zuma High School.
To learn more about the interventions and programmes we are implementing to position Durban as the maritime centre of excellence, for maritime education and training please visit www.maritimecluster.co.za