The Director-General of the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), Kamal-Deen Ali, says Ghana is stepping up efforts to increase the number of Ghanaian seafarers participating in the global maritime labour market.
According to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), the initiative aims to position Ghana to take advantage of the growing global demand for maritime labour.
He explained that the move forms part of a broader strategy to take advantage of the growing international demand for seafarers while creating employment opportunities for the country’s youth. The initiative, he noted, has received strong encouragement from President John Dramani Mahama, who has shown keen interest in strengthening Ghana’s seafaring sector.
Speaking at a media forum organised by the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), Dr Ali emphasised the crucial role of shipping in the global economy, noting that international trade would struggle to function without maritime transport.
He added that the shipping industry offers numerous opportunities along its value chain, including ship construction, ship management, insurance, crewing and other maritime services.
Dr Ali said the global seafaring workforce currently stands at about 1.9 million people, fairly distributed between officers and ratings. Officers serve in management-level positions on ships, while ratings perform operational and technical roles.
However, he noted that the geographical distribution of seafarers remains uneven, with about 50 per cent coming from Asia, 33 per cent from Europe, nine per cent from the Americas and only about four to five per cent from Africa.
Dr Ali expressed concern that although Ghana has a strong maritime history, the country’s output of seafarers remains relatively low. Ghana currently has about 5,000 seafarers, placing it about fifth in Africa behind countries such as Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Morocco and Egypt.
He pointed out that Ghana once led seafaring development on the continent, having established the Nautical College in 1958 and operated the historic Black Star Line.
Despite producing many competent captains and maritime professionals over the years, he said the country’s overall number of seafarers remains below its potential.
Dr Ali also noted that global demand for seafarers is rising, with an estimated shortage of between 27,000 and 30,000 currently, expected to increase to about 90,000 by the end of the year. He stressed that Africa’s growing youth population positions the continent to help fill part of that gap.
One of the major challenges facing Ghanaian maritime graduates, he said, is acquiring “sea time,” the practical training required before they can obtain professional certification.
Cadets usually spend about four years studying at institutions such as the Regional Maritime University before undertaking about one year of sea-time training to qualify for certification from the Ghana Maritime Authority.
According to Dr Ali, securing sea-time placements has historically been difficult because shipping companies often hesitate to allocate limited ship space to trainees.
To address the challenge, he said the GMA has adopted a proactive approach by directly engaging international shipping companies to secure training placements for Ghanaian cadets.
The authority, he explained, is gradually shifting from being solely a regulator to also playing a promotional role in supporting seafarer development.
Dr Ali said the new strategy is already producing results, with several cadets securing placements with international shipping companies. Partnerships with firms such as the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company and a Saudi shipping company have created new opportunities for Ghanaian cadets.
Although some placements initially involve only a few cadets, he said they could open the door to more opportunities once the trainees demonstrate their competence.
He added that cadets undertaking sea-time training are usually paid monthly stipends ranging between 500 and 1,000 US dollars.
Dr Ali further disclosed that the GMA is developing a comprehensive seafarer development programme to expand training and placement opportunities for Ghanaian maritime students.
He expressed optimism that the programme would significantly increase the number of Ghanaian seafarers working globally in the coming years, while assuring that the authority’s regulatory responsibilities would remain uncompromised.
He also noted that Ghana has recently been recognised under the Abuja Memorandum of Understanding as the best-performing country in the West African sub-region for quality port state control inspections, Ghana News Agency (GNA) reported.
