The Caribbean Maritime University (CMU) on Wednesday (January 10) signed its first partnership of 2024 with German Ship Repair Jamaica (GSRJ) to upskill the local youth in non-traditional careers.

The signing took place at a brief ceremony at the CMU’s main campus at Palisadoes Park in Kingston.

“At the CMU we have embarked on multiple partnerships over the last few years but the one that gives me the most excitement is this, our partnership with GSRJ. This one feels as if it will have the most resonance because of the immediacy,” said university president Professor Andrew Spencer. 

Underscoring Spencer’s comment, it was announced that before the January 10 signing, GSRJ took on four interns from the university to work on its first project that was recently completed, the Mexican Giant, and all interns have been performing excellently.

“This is a very good indication of bigger things that CMU and GSRJ can achieve together,” shared Colonel Martin Rickman, chief executive officer of GSRJ.

The university has always been a strong advocate for apprenticeship and mentorship. Therefore, under this partnership, there will be an opening for disenfranchised youth in Jamaica and youth who are in communities with little to no opportunities.

CMU indicated that this will be done through apprenticeship programmes and getting the youth into a space driven by excellence that will facilitate non-traditional careers. 

“The reality is that the prime minister indicated at the recent launch of the GSRJ project that he wants shipping and logistics to be the next bauxite industry of decades ago where it generated so many technical skills, that it exported to other industries what it could not absorb. With this partnership, we think that this allows us to churn out the kinds of skills that will be absorbed to the best of our ability and can also benefit other industries that need technical skillsets,” noted Professor Spencer.

Furthermore, a GSRJ Centre of Excellence will be established, which will be responsible for skill development and professional training.

In addition, customised professional training programmes will be available through the GSRJ Centre of Excellence. Students who embark on a journey with the Centre of Excellence must have an opportunity to move seamlessly from the academic space to the industry space. This should be completed within the next twelve months.

“We are looking forward to working with the CMU in developing curricula relevant to the various skillsets needed. One such area is dockmaster as this is a skill area that is very very difficult to find. Based on our research here at the GSRJ, we have not found anywhere else in the world that does specific training for dockmasters,” Colonel Rickman shared.

To this end, both entities will be working assiduously to develop a curriculum in this area for local and international persons as it can be a game changer in the local maritime industry.

Speaking with the team, Colonel Rickman emphasised his excitement for this new journey and highlighted the wealth of possibilities under this partnership.

“Over time we should have more locals being trained in these technical areas to reduce the need to hire international persons. This is the start of many things to come, and I am sure there will be other areas of collaboration outside of what was formalised in the MoU to bring both the CMU and GSRJ to the international standards that we can do.”