The Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji (MSAF) hosted the Combined National Workshop on International Maritime Organization (IMO) Module Courses: 6.09 Training Course for Instructors and 3.12 Training course Assessment, Examination, and Certification of Seafarers.

A total of 49 Marine Officers from MSAF, the Fiji Maritime Academy (FMA) and the Private Sector took part in the five-day workshop held at Pacific Communities (SPC) headquarters Nabua from the 10th to the 15th of October 2016.

The workshop, fully funded by IMO, was the biggest of its kind conducted in Fiji and was undertaken to ensure that FMA Instructors and MSAF and assessors/examiners obtained the relevant training required for instructors and assessors under the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watch keeping for Seafarers (STCW) Convention 1978 as amended and Fiji’s National Regulations giving effect to the STCW Convention.

“This workshop was the result of active participation by MSAF in IMO forums, such as the Maritime Safety Committee meeting and Marine Environment Protection Committee, and continuous dialogue and agreement between MSAF and the IMO Technical Cooperation Division,” said MSAF’s Chief Executive Officer, John Tunidau.

The International Maritime Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations which is responsible for measures to improve the safety and security of international shipping and to prevent marine pollution from ships.

MSAF will host another Combined National Workshop on IMO Module course 1.27: Electronic Chart Display Information System (ECDIS) and IMO Module Course 1.25: Global Maritime Distress Safety Systems (GMDSS) to be fully funded by IMO in March 2017.