Pretoria – Transport Deputy Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga will on Wednesday host the World Maritime Day Career Expo and Exhibition at the Mittah Seperepere Conference Centre in Kimberly in the Northern Cape.
Every year during the last week of September, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) celebrates World Maritime Day.
South Africa has declared 2013 as Maritime Year.
This year, the celebrations will be held under the theme ‘Sustainable Development: International Maritime Organisation’s contribution beyond Rio+20’.
Chikunga, who will give a keynote address during the celebrations, will be joined by Northern Cape MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison, Mac Jack, maritime industry CEOs and captains and senior national and provincial government officials.
The World Maritime Day 2013 will be celebrated in Peru on Thursday, 26 September, with parallel events being hosted by various IMO member countries across the globe.
In the Northern Cape, the celebrations will be attended by school children from previously disadvantaged communities, who will all display their knowledge of the maritime sector through educational exhibitions.
The day will also be used as a platform to create more awareness about careers in the maritime industry.
Key maritime stakeholders such as the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA), the Department of Environmental Affairs, Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA), Transnet Port Terminals (TPT), Grinrod Shipping Company, Smit Amandla and the Northern Cape province will hold exhibitions and maritime experts will engage with and educate the learners about the details and activities of the industry, including vocational experience.
Schools around the Northern Cape, in particular, will participate in a competition involving ship designing, essay writing, drama and art competition.
The South African Navy will form part of the celebrations and learners from the participating schools will become beneficiaries of bursaries offered by the maritime industry. – SAnews.gov.za
