To reap the benefit of the vast employment opportunities in the maritime sector and to certify their skill sets, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was inked digitally between the Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) on Thursday.
The agreement was signed in the presence of Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey and Minister of State for Shipping (Independent Charge) and Minister of Chemicals and Fertilisers, Mansukh Mandaviya and Raj Kumar Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power and New & Renewable Energy and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and senior officials.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Pandey congratulated the Ministry of Shipping for undertaking endeavour to create a job-ready workforce by skilling them and build their competencies up to the global standards. “The vision of making India the skill capital of the World will continue to prosper if we work together and craft strategies to enhance access and innovate in the areas of skilling. Maritime transport is a critical segment that propels the economic development of our country. This strategic partnership with the Ministry of Shipping is also derived from the same motto. It is aimed in the direction in which our initiatives support our workforce by skilling them and builds their competencies up to global standards.”
Expressing his gratitude to the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Mandaviya said that this partnership would provide vast employment opportunities and better prospects to the youth living in coastal areas. This MoU would reinforce the commitment of coastal community development under Sagar Mala programme of the Ministry of Shipping, he added.
Mandaviya said that it will nurture the skilled manpower for the development of ports and maritime sector of India and globally. “We are dedicated towards building the economic strength of our country by improving the capacities of our ports. We are also committed towards resolving the diverse issues faced by the maritime transport sector. We promise to build a skilled workforce to empower our youth, strengthen their stand in a technology-driven future and accelerate the growth of the maritime sector. The partnership will provide better prospects to our candidates who are committed in the development of ports and maritime sector. Additionally, this will open opportunities within India and in the international coastal lines for our workforce”, he added.
Special Focus on Coastal Districts As per the terms of MoU, MSDE will cooperate in development of course curriculum, National Occupational Standards, content, etc., for cruise tourism, logistics, fisheries, ship building, ship repair and ship breaking, dredging, offshore supply chain etc. It will also leverage its existing infrastructure such as Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) as well as Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) centres to train manpower required as per the skill gaps in the coastal districts.
MSDE will also help in mobilising private sector or corporate social responsibility (CSR) funding for skill development in the port and maritime sector and facilitate port and maritime sector in technical vocational education and training (TVET) agreements signed for skill development with international partners.
The support in funding the implementation of various skilling initiatives wherever applicable and feasible under the Sagar Mala will be extended by the Ministry of Shipping. Under the partnership, the ministry will facilitate implementation of activities related to skill development not only through institutions under MoS and autonomous bodies but also the involvement of private sector.
The ministry will also facilitate the identification and availability of infrastructure that can be leveraged for development of skill development centres and utilisation of the same as in-situ training hubs. This would include developing 5-10 shipping cabins to deploy remote training and practical whereby instead of investing in developing classroom training infrastructure, some ships can be customised with mobile classrooms to deploy training in remote areas.
To implement the skill training based on the need of the industry and youth aspiration, the ministry is collaborating with different ministries and agencies that have been involved in skills training for a long time. Skill development of coastal communities is an important objective of the Sagar Mala programme and a budget of Rs 1 billion has been allocated for coastal community development activities.