A salute to the unsung heroes of world trade

By Capt. Ajith Peiris 

On this World Maritime Day, Ceyline, as the largest ship’s crew recruitment and management company in Sri Lanka, and the founding partner of CINEC campus, the largest maritime academy in Sri Lanka and a leading maritime training institute in South Asia, would like to honour and appreciate the undisputed hard work done by seafarers all over the world to keep our global trade/economy moving. 

85% of the global trade is done through seas, rivers and waterways using vessels that range from small crafts to ultra large ships. All these vessels are operated/manned by hardworking, skilled and dedicated seafarers from all over the world. 

Whilst nations like China, Philippines, Russia, Indonesia and Ukraine are the top five seafarer producing nations, Sri Lanka is currently responsible for the supply of 1% of the global market which is 1.6 million seafarers.  

This 16,000-active seafarer pool in Sri Lanka, according to our estimates generate over $ 300 million per annum by way of wages into our country. The indirect contribution from seafarer recruitment to Sri Lanka is approximately $ 500 million per year. 

In this current pandemic where most of our foreign income generation has been reduced, especially from the tourism industry, foreign remittances from seafarers have continued to come and in fact grown during the pandemic. Therefore, this segment has been and is crucial to our country. 

In the recent past, there is a growth in this sector due to the increase in demand globally for Sri Lankan seafarers. This is due to the uncontrolled pandemic situation in most seafarers producing Nations and the shift of preference from shipowners and managers to look at alternate nationalities from the existing major crew supplying nations. 

Sri Lanka is in a position to cater to this need. The estimate is that there will be a global shortage of 150,000 seafarers by the end of 2025. Sri Lanka should prepare ourselves to capitalise on this opportunity. 

Sri Lankan seafarers are trained, skilled, motivated and disciplined professionals. The life at sea is not an easy one. You are on board a ship, in an enclosed restricted space, for over six months at a time, away from your family and loved ones, under a high-pressure work environment, where the margin for error is very small, and a minute error can mean loss of millions of dollars or in worst-case, loss of life. 

The shipping world has transformed into a very fast paced and demanding one. Where the consumers want goods faster and at the most competitive price. Where the speed of delivery and cost have become the key performance indicators. Therefore, vessel operators are under pressure to ensure cargo is transported from one port to another in the least amount of time using bigger ships to take the advantage of the economies of scale. This commercial pressure ultimately trickles down the line all the way to the seafarers that operate these ships. They have to work efficiently and diligently at all times. 

We prepare our seafarers to face this intense work environment to the best we can, using state of the art teaching methods including high-tech simulations. 

There are currently 11 maritime academies in Sri Lanka producing Sri Lankan seafarers, where CINEC has led the way over the last 20 years, not only in Sri Lanka but in the region and beyond. 

It is essential that the Government of Sri Lanka and other connected authorities recognise the importance of Sri Lankan seafarers and the work they do for our country. 

It is essential that we recognise their contribution to our national economy especially during these tough times. 

It is important that all authorities assist and facilitate seafarer employment in order to increase job opportunities for Sri Lankans on ships and help the national economy to grow. It is important that all ministries understand and support this endeavour, as it is in our national interest. 

In this scenario we are happy to inform that the present Minister of Ports and Shipping has understood and recognised the value of such an initiative and obtained the approval of the Cabinet to embark on a project to increase the employment of SL seafarers from 16,000 to 50,000 in five years through a public/private initiative which is presently underway. 

The Government has to ensure procedures and protocols are in place to facilitate the smooth embarkation and disembarkation of seafarers from ships especially during these challenging times. 

Procedures have to be in place to streamline/expedite our examination and certification process, so we can produce seafarers efficiently, to cater to the demand.  This exercise is also underway with a continuous dialogue being established between the Merchant Shipping Secretariat, the Association of Seafarer Recruiting Agents (ASRA) and Maritime Academies. 

The Government and authorities have to assist/support the private sector in their vision to create a cultural shift and change Sri Lanka from a country that provide unskilled labour to a country that provide skilled seafarers to the world. 

On this World Maritime Day, I would like to thank all our seafarers for their hard work and dedication to the industry. 

My earnest request to Sri Lankan seafarers, “Always work hard intelligently with commitment. Please remember that you are a flag bearer of our nation on a world stage. Therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure that you keep the Sri Lankan flag flying high by doing a good job of work and doing the right thing so that many more Sri Lankans can benefit and pursue this rewarding career.” 

I salute you all! Stay safe.

(The writer is Chairman of Ceyline Group and President of CINEC Campus.)