The Presided said the occasion marked the beginning of a well-thought-out plan to transform the national shipping line into a world-class one in the next 10 years. Uhuru recalled that the journey to revive the blue economy and the fisheries sector started in 2016. He said the passage of necessary legislation to support the revival of the KNSL is crucial in ensuring the growth of Kenya’s maritime economy.
The President also commissioned the Bandari Maritime Academy, which is expected to become a centre of excellence in maritime training, research and skill development for the blue economy.
The academy will be a supplier of world-class seafarers for shipping lines across the world. During this occassion, President Uhuru also witnessed the passing out of 62 out of the 119 seafarers recruited by the MSC.
“I am very pleased to note that 40 of them have already been assigned a ship, by the Mediterranean Shipping Company,” he said. Uhuru said about 90 per cent of Kenya’s foreign trade is dependent on maritime transport. The MSC-KNSL agreement will enable Kenya to benefit from regional and global maritime transport value chain.
The MSC is the second largest shipping company in the world and the only one that owns both cargo and cruise ships.
“We are, therefore, fortunate that, through this reinvigorated partnership, we can quickly grow our shipping capacity by riding on its wings,” the President said.
Last November, From the same area, President Uhuru launched the Kenya Coast Guard Service (KCGS) to secure Kenya’s territorial waters. The Coast Guard Service guards against illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing, provides safety to seafarers, and prevents drug smuggling as well as illegal movements of people and goods.
“The bulk of these seafarer jobs will be generated through cruise shipping,” the President said, regretting that while there have been many opportunities for Kenyans to serve in foreign ships, they lacked opportunities to get sea time, a pre-requisite for serving on ships.
The MSC has committed to create training opportunities for Kenyan youth and to provide about 3,000 jobs per year. It will provide 1,500 sea time slots for Kenyan youth. The KNSL, under the agreement, will gain access to more than 500 ports across the world.
