Middle East’s First-of-its-Kind Event to Expand Prospects of Maritime Vocational Education & Training Sector

DMCA sponsors first Maritime Academic Conference & Expo 2015 in Dubai, UAE

Dubai, UAE, November 9th, 2015 – Dubai Maritime City Authority (DMCA), the government authority charged with regulating, coordinating and supervising all aspects of Dubai’s maritime sector, has announced its official sponsorship of the Maritime Academic Conference & Expo 2015 – MARACAD which will be organized by Sham Company for Conventions and Exhibitions, from November 9 to 10, 2015 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

To be held for the first time in the Middle East, the show will open with wide participation of global maritime sector leaders, senior government officials, decision makers, prominent international experts, and local and regional operators and owners of marine crafts.

MARACAD’s detailed agenda includes discussions on the major issues and challenges faced by the maritime vocational education and training sector, finding out the appropriate solutions, and encouraging the exchange of best practices and the latest trends that contribute to the sustainable development of the maritime sector in the UAE and the whole region.

His Excellency Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman of Dubai Ports, Customs, and Free Zones Corporation, Chairman of DMCA, emphasized the importance of sponsoring MARACAD as it represents a first major step taken in the Middle East to discuss how to promote maritime vocational education and training to complement the accomplishments of DMCA. The Authority has organized a series of leading international conferences as additional efforts to consolidate Dubai’s position on the global maritime map.

H.E. added that MARACAD is a very important strategic platform for exchanging opinions on the best ways to face the emerging challenges that obstruct the development of maritime education and training. The event will highlight the UAE’s experience in supporting the sustainability of the maritime industry’s growth through strengthening its educational infrastructure and building effective strategic partnerships. The UAE has collaborated with the Emirates International Maritime Academy (EIMA), maritime training centers, and classification organizations to build a generation of qualified professionals who can keep pace with the rapid developments in line with the directives of the visionary government.

MARACAD has a strategic importance as a first-of-its-kind regional event aimed at encouraging constructive dialogue and establishing solid partnerships to promote maritime education and training and to explore new prospects for optimizing investment in manpower as a backbone of overall development. The agenda of the event includes extensive discussions on the role the UAE’s maritime authorities in boosting the efficiency of the domestic maritime sector. It will also throw the spotlight on the role of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in providing scholarships and experiences for the Middle East’s academies and maritime training centers to develop a new generation of qualified maritime manpower in line with the highest international standards.

Amer Ali, Executive Director, Dubai Maritime City Authority, concluded: “The event comes at a time of increased importance in human resources investment that drives the growth of the maritime sector locally and regionally. By hosting this event, we look forward to expand the prospects of maritime education and training and activate the joint work between the economic consulting offices, academies, maritime authorities, banks, maritime services companies, and national and international funding institutions. This will help us develop the maritime education sector’s infrastructure as a major contributor for shaping the future of the global maritime industry.”

MARACAD 2015 will focus on the policies concerning the future requirements of the maritime sector’s labor market and the changing training needs of shipping industry, the articles of the Maritime Labor Convention (MLC) agreement and their role in providing appropriate working conditions, and the creation of a safer living environment onboard ships. The event will also cover modern training programs that keep pace with advanced technology and electronic services in the field of maritime transport, oil and gas, maritime stations management, communications, and others.