SAMSA sharing careers development information with youth one class at a time.

Pretoria: 11 February 2018

With South Africa’s economic development plans now fully inclusive of the maritime sector wherein billions of rand are to be invested and thousands of jobs expected to be created progressively in the next decade, preparing properly prospective labour with accurate information on careers has come into sharp focus.

It is with that in mind that the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) has stepped up its ongoing maritime sector public awareness campaign by developing a Careers Awareness Programme for high school learners across the country as part of its corporate social investment programme.

A week ago, Ngwenyathi High School on the rural outskirts of East London in the Eastern Cape province was the demonstration venue of the new online careers programme for high schools.

Ngwenyathi High School is one of only four maritime high schools currently in the province and is the first of two established with the assistance of SAMSA about a decade ago.

Targeted for the Careers Awareness Programme were Grade 11 pupils who were taken through the online programme by Ms Anne-Marie Stanisavljevic of The Education Agency together with SAMSA southern region manager, Ms Bongiwe Stofile and SAMSA CSI Manager, Ms Mapitso Dlepu

According to SAMSA, the programme is designed to allow high school pupils an opportunity to get a broad sense of what careers are available both in the maritime and other sectors in order to assist the young people in their choice of school subjects at matric level towards their selected careers.

The live demonstration of the careers programme at the East London school on Wednesday and Thursday last week coincided with South Africa’s president, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa’s delivery of the country’s State of the Nation address.

During his speech in Parliament on Thursday evening, Mr Ramaphosa described the country’s maritime economic sector in terms of especially oceans’ economy as holding great promise for the country.

He said: “Since Operation Phakisa on the Oceans Economy in 2014, we have secured investments of nearly R30 billion and created over 7,000 direct jobs. The investments have been mainly in infrastructure development, marine manufacturing, aquaculture, and the oil and gas sector.

“Expected investment in the Oceans Economy over the next five years is estimated at R3,8 billion by government and R65 billion by the private sector. These investments are expected to create over 100,000 direct jobs and more than 250,000 indirect jobs,” said Mr Ramaphosa.

Ms Anne-Marie Stanisavljeivc of the Education Agency (right) going through the SAMSA Careers Development Programme with Grade 11 pupils of the Ngwenyathi High School near East London on Thursday, 7 February 2019

Earlier in the day in East London, according to Ms Stanisavljevic and Ms Stofile, the high schools targeted SAMSA Careers Development Programme is intended to provide high school learners with career guidance that will help them align their careers choices with their skills, personalities and capabilities.

The programme does not limit itself to maritime high schools or maritime related careers, but extends to just about every career youth may have an interest in, inclusive of related careers.

In the two videos below, the officials explain exactly how the programme works for high school learners both in the short and long term.

The first video reflects on the actual presentation of the programme to learners (+-3.30 minutes), a brief chat with Ms Stanisavljevic (+-3.00 minutes) and a response by Ngwenyathi High School’s deputy Principal, Mr Vuyisile Mtsewu (+-4.30 minutes).

In the second video (+-4.30 minutes), Ms Stofile of SAMSA expands on this and related projects the agency is engaged with on the field of youth empowerment particularly in the Eastern Cape inclusive of the presentation of tertiary level education bursaries to two of the Ngwenyathi High School pupils earlier this year.

The rural villages among which Ngwenyathi High School is situated, some 33 kilometers north of East London, Eastern Cape.

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SA’s top economist Dr Iraj Abedian warns Cape maritime high school pupils against ‘culture of instant gratification’.

Dr Iraj Abedian, of South Africa’s top economists who is CEO of Pan-African Capital Holdings as well as Chairman of Amsol board of directors, flanked by three of about a dozen Simon’s Town School Lawhill Maritime Centre matric pupils who who received awards in recognition of their academic performance at the school on Thursday.

Cape Town: 14 October 2018

South Africa’s youth would be well-advised to learn to be patient in their pursuit of success both in their school and tertiary level studies through to their working lives while steadfast in their ethical conduct, Dr Iraj Abedian, one of South Africa’s top economists told dozens of foundation level maritime studies pupils in Simon’s Town.

He was the main guest speaker at an awards event at the Simon’s Town School Lawhill Maritime Centre on Thursday evening during which top pupils were given recognition for their excellent performance in their maritime school studies and related performance during 2018.

Prior to addressing guests and pupils at the event, Dr Abedian assisted in handing out a number of awards to the top performing pupils.

Later in a speech titled: The Road Ahead in the Age of Disruption, and lasting about half an hour, Dr Abedian enumerated four of what he described as some key factors of success through hard work drawn from his own personal professional experience and which he said the pupils would be well advised to note and heed.

These were, he said: “commitment to excellence, patience, (a set of) clear core values and commitment to ethical practice, and a conscious embrace of uncertainty with enthusiasm.”

According to Dr Abedian, disruption was a constant and it needed to be embraced in the pursuit of success, and success, he said, was ‘not a destination but a journey’ requiring patience complimented by a conscious effort towards proper ethical conduct instead of a desire for instant gratification often characterized by bad behavior.

“In every corner of our lives, we see disruption. Disruption is not always bad. Very often it’s good, but the way we interpret it, we make it negative or positive,” he said.

Dr Abedian said the pupils had every reason to be grateful to their parents, the school as well as all those that supported them during and an important phase of their education journey, the foundation phase.

He said: “The acquisition of knowledge is a necessary condition for success. As if often said, success is not a destination but a journey, a journey of incremental accumulation of successes. In this journey, commitment to excellence is an important companion.This has to be a benchmark of your professional life.

“In addition to hard work and commitment to excellence, the next contributing factor to success is patience. I say this with a great concern in how today’s world of rampant pressure for instantaneous gratification, and unbridled pursuit of rapid accumulation of wealth in particular, as well as the ostentatious public display of opulence of wealth remains a great concern,” he said.

SHARING NOTES: (From Left) Mr Odwa Mtati, Projects Manager at South African International Maritime Institute (SAIMI), Ms Nthabiseng Tema, senior manager, Corporate Affairs at South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) chatting briefly with Dr Iraj Abedian shortly before his main address of the awards event at Lawhill Maritime Centre on Thursday.

Dr Abedian said South African society currently was suffering from the latter culture of instant gratification and dominant to which was a penchant for corruption and fraud, as evidenced, he said, by a daily litany of corruption and fraud stories emanating from both the country’s private and public sectors as well as civil society.

For Dr Abedian’s full remarks, click on the video below.

Meanwhile, the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) – a long term supporter of the Lawhill Maritime Centre mainly through bursaries for mostly disadvantaged children keen on maritime studies at foundation level – joined several other entities, individuals and families this year in granting tertiary level bursaries to two pupils of the school in recognition of their excellence school performance.

The recipients were final matric year pupils Thabiso Rantsho and Sinazo Viti.

REWARDING EXCELLENCE: Two recipients of SAMSA’s first tertiary level bursary awards at Lawhill Maritime Centre on Thursday evening: Thabiso Rantsho (Left) and Sinazo Viti (Right) flanked by (far Left) Ms Nthabiseng Tema, senior manager, Corporate Affairs and (far Right) Mr John Phiri, senior manager, Human Capital.

Presenting the SAMSA awards, human capital senior manager John Phiri who with Corporate Affairs senior manager Ms Nthabiseng Tema presented the awards, warned the pupils that discipline in their studies was also a key determinant factor to their success as the maritime sector, but particularly seafaring, was not for the fainthearted.

According to Mr Phiri, several former student and cadets that SAMSA sponsored in the past were now sitting at home without jobs due to lack of discipline he described as characterized by an undue and misplaced sense of entitlement.

For Mr Phiri’s full remarks, click on the video below.

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Free State Province pledges financial support to maritime education; condemns ill-discipline by South Africa university students

Xhariep Dam Resort (Free State): 30 September 2016

Ill-discipline by South Africa’s youth at the country’s educational institutions involving wanton violence and destruction of property is a serious threat to many gains made to improve the socio economic conditions of South Africa’s people, Free State MEC for Transport, Bhutana Khompela has warned.

ALL FOR MARITIME EDUCATION: Free State MEC for Roads & Transport, and Police; Mr Butana Khompela

The warning came during celebration of World Maritime Day 2016 held this year at the Xhariep (Gariep) Dam in the Free State. The national Department of Transport driven annual event’s proceedings incorporate a Careers Expo during which foundational students (Grade 10-12) are taken through an exposition of a variety of careers in the country’s maritime sector.

Speaking during the main event on Thursday, Mr Khompela said the Free State Province regarded education as top priority and that it led the country’s other eight provincial governments in spending the most on bursaries to support tertiary level students with their studies in South Africa and abroad.

However, he said he noted with sadness and frustration that the country’s universities had been forcibly closed down by violent students for what he described as no sensible reason.

“When we fought for the liberation of this country, we said ‘liberation first and education last’. We achieved liberation and now it is time for education. Education must come first and nothing else!” said Mr Khompela

He warned that the notion of a free education was a misnomer South Africa’s youth at universities were using based on ignorance bothering on malice, and that their violent actions to demand free education were both unreasonable and a serious threat to socio economic development gains made since 1994.

He said in full recognition of the fact that education was not free, a total 8000 bursaries were awarded students in the province by the provincial government with the ultimate objective of producing highly educated youths who would in turn contribute even better to the development of the country’s economy in a whole range of sectors inclusive maritime.

Mr Khompela said at the end of the current year, the province would be welcoming back a total 400 doctors who have completed their medical studies through support by the province and who would now contribute to uplifting the health standards of people in the province’s rural communities.

He pledged that the Free State provincial government would extend the the same financial support also to students keen on pursuing careers in the country’s maritime sector.

However, he said; those efforts would all be in vain if wayward youth at the country’s tertiary level education institutions demanding free education and bent on violence and destruction of valuable property solely to force their way, were allowed to get away with it.

“We never received free education. We were oppressed, yet we did everything possible to obtain education under the most difficult conditions. There is no such thing as free education. There is no country anywhere in the world that offers free education. Even Cuba, does not offer free education,” said Mr Khompela.

For his full speech (Audio Only) Click Here

Maritime foundation education continues to draw industry support

Sub-Saharan region maritime industry services group, Subtech South Africa confirms sponsorship of bursaries for maritime high school pupils

Pretoria: 18 May 2016

LENDING A HAND: Subetch South Africa officials, Mr Rudolph Punt and Ms Mandy McGuire (Subtech) with the pupils Gershwyn Poole, Siyamthanda Vuyelwa and Phaphama Kepu who were recently awarded bursaries at Lawhill High School — LENDING A HAND: Subtech South Africa officials, Mr Rudolph Punt and Ms Mandy McGuire with the pupils Gershwyn Poole, Siyamthanda Vuyelwa and Phaphama Kepu who were recently awarded bursaries at Lawhill High School

South Africa’s maritime sector education, training and skills development continues to draw support from a growing network of contributors as efforts gain traction towards transformation and integration of the sector into the country’s mainstream economy.

This became evident once more recently after Subtech South Africa awarded three Grade 12 Lawhill Maritime Centre pupils at Simonstown full bursaries for the 2016 education year.

The three youths are Siyamtanda Vuyelwa and Phaphama Kepu – both from the Eastern Cape, and Gershwyn Poole from the Western Cape.

Just above the Simonstown harbour stands the Lawhill Maritime Centre, originally a foundational level education centre specializing in maritime economy sector subjects, and now poised to also possibly offer specialized in-service training also to teachers.

Subtech SA, a sub-Saharan region marine industry services group based in Durban, said it readily offered to support the youths after establishing their high level of interest in maritime studies.

“What binds these three kids and Subtech is a passion for all things maritime! We look forward to monitoring their progress over 2016 and wish them well for their Matric Year,’ said the company in a statement. It said the bursaries would cover both school and hostel fees, allowing the enthusiastic group of youths to continue with their maritime studies.

Subtech SA described Lawhill’s maritime studies programme – featuring maritime economics and nautical sciences – as being “one of only a very few examples of a specific industry playing a role, at secondary school level, in providing industry-focused education which improves the school leaver’s chances of finding employment.”

“The programme,” said Subtech SA: “is aimed at stimulating maritime awareness among young people, attracting them to the shipping industry and providing the industry with high quality, skilled and knowledgeable employees.

“Because the Lawhill Maritime Centre receives no state funding, its students – the majority of whom come from financially-stressed homes – are reliant on bursaries provided by the maritime and related industries to fund their education from Grade 10 to 12.”

The South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) is among business and related institutions that also sponsor children at Lawhill Maritime Centre.

EDUCATING SAILORS: SAMSA Centre for Maritime Excellence executive manager Ms. Sindiswa Nhlumayo (third from Right), and (From Left) SAMSA skills development manager John Phiri; Centre for Maritime Excellence executive PA, Charity Bodiba and SAMSA human resources executive manager Ms. Lesego Mashishi with Lawhill Maritime Centre students sponsored by SAMSA during a visit in August 2015. SAMSA is to increase the number of youths at high school for the 2016 school year. — EDUCATING SAILORS: SAMSA officials, former Centre of Maritime Excellence, the late Ms Sindiswa Nhlumayo (3rd from Right) and (From Left); Skills Development Manager John Phiri; Centre for Maritime Excellence executive PA, Charity Bodiba and SAMSA human resources executive manager Ms. Lesego Mashishi with Lawhill Maritime Centre students sponsored by SAMSA during a visit in August 2015.

SAMSA, encouraging and collaborating closely with a range of stakeholders across public and private sectors in promoting maritime sector education, training and skills development as a core competence to the sector’s growth and transformation, has since 2013 supported as many as 65 foundational level pupils from across the country keen on pursuing maritime studies at the Simons Town education institution, inclusive of a total 16 pupils currently, involving an investment for the period of just over half-a-million rand.

Similar support is extended to tertiary level students predominantly at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and Durban University of Technology, both of which offer tailored studies and skills development courses on maritime economy.

*Meanwhile, scores of pupils at the Eastern Cape’s first and newest maritime high schools in East London continue to get support and exposure from the country’s maritime sector with a view to enhancing their interest and knowledge of the sector.

This past weekend, the pupils from George Randall and Ngwenyathi High Schools, were bused to Port Elizabeth for a day and taken onboard the country’s research vessel, the SA Agulhas II shortly after its return from a research expedition in the Antarctica region.

The two Eastern Cape high schools began formally this year to offer dedicated classes for maritime studies, featuring maritime economics and nautical sciences.

A month ago, pupils from the schools were among guests of President Jacob Zuma during his delivery of his annual report on Operation Phakisa, also in Port Elizabeth.