Vanuatu Maritime College

GENERAL BACKGROUND

TINGBAOT SEFTI

LONG SOLWOTA

Vanuatu, a chain of 83 islands with a total land mass of 13,000 km², lies in the south west Pacific Ocean some 2000 km to the north east of Australia. The ni-Vanuatu people are predominantly Melanesian and have more than 110 distinctly different cultures and languages. The total population is about 200,000. Bislama, French and English are the three national languages.

As an island nation, Vanuatu relies upon sea transport for its livelihood and prosperity. Domestic shipping operations in Vanuatu are provided by individual private owners, with some 120 vessels currently in operation as inter-island traders, charter vessels, passenger ferries, resort craft and fishing vessels.

In 1981 Vanuatu established an International Shipping Register. Since 1993 this has been managed by Vanuatu Maritime Services Ltd (VMS), which maintains offices in London, New York, Hong Kong, Singapore, Athens, Yokohama and Port Vila to take care of a fleet of almost 620 vessels currently on the international register. Crews for these vessels are recruited internationally and Vanuatu recognises qualifications issued by the administrations of other countries for service in Vanuatu flag vessels

Vanuatu, as a member of the International Maritime Organization, retains a permanent representative in London to ensure its interests are fully represented.

Vanuatu also licenses foreign-flag fishing vessels to operate in its waters and supplies fishing crews for these vessels where required. Although the number of ni-Vanuatu fishermen has declined, some 200 are reported to be still in employment.

Major changes in international maritime affairs, including the 1995 amendments to the STCW Convention and the advent of the ISM Code, together with a Vanuatu Government Comprehensive Reform Programme aimed at divesting the government of commercial activities and enforcing transparency and accountability, have helped reform of the Vanuatu shipping industry.

As part of the reform two major initiatives were introduced:

The Vanuatu Maritime Authority was created and charged with the administration of legislation applying to shipping on the domestic and international registers. Ports and Harbours have taken over this role following the repeal of the Vanuatu Maritime Act.
The Vanuatu Maritime College, which commenced training in 1999, was made responsible for providing training, to appropriate standards, for all seafarers aboard domestic shipping, for fishermen aboard domestic and foreign-flag fishing vessels and for ni-Vanuatu seafarers seeking employment aboard commercial vessels trading internationally.

The College Quality Management System focuses on quality training, high levels of student achievement and a positive approach to customer service.

The carefully selected team of instructors is also committed to quality training, with a strong emphasis on the development of practical skills, good seamanship and professionalism.

Training

The College offers a range of competency-based training and assessment programmes in the following areas:

Domestic shipping - All levels from basic safety training through deck and engine watchkeeping qualifications to certificate for Master <20GT, Master <200GT, Master <500GT, Engineer <75kW, Engineer <300kW and Engineer <500kW.
Fishing - Training in rural fisheries and small vessel operations for villagers to develop fishing and seafood handling skills, promote safety and upgrade outboard maintenance and small boat repair skills; special training programmes for ni-Vanuatu fishermen working aboard foreign-flagged fishing vessels.
International shipping - Training for seafarers wishing to serve as general-purpose, deck, engine and catering ratings; training for seafarers currently serving aboard international vessels (safety; deck and engine watch rating; oil, chemical and gas tanker familiarisation; advanced fire-fighting; proficiency in survival craft; medic First Aid); crowd management and special hospitality training for young men and women recruited to work on passenger vessels.
With funding assistance from AusAID, an officer cadet scheme has been developed to enable suitably motivated and academically sound young ni-Vanuatu to pursue careers as deck and engineer officers aboard international vessels.
ISPS Code: The College recently began offering training for company, ship and port facility security officers.

All programmes offered at the College are in modular format, with multiple entry points to provide flexibility and ease of access for students. Whenever possible training is taken to industry, and the needs of industry are included in training programme development.

Enquiries from students within and outside Vanuatu are welcome. Residential facilities are available, subject to demand.