New Maritime Laws Before Parliament Poised to Expand Job Opportunities in Island's Blue Economy

A new set of maritime laws before Parliament is expected to open up more job prospects in the island’s blue economy, government lawmakers said Friday.

Speaking during debate on the Shipping Domestic Vessels Bill, St Michael South MP Marsha Caddle said the legislation paved the way for increased training in seafaring skills.

“We considered it necessary to have training in maritime and seafaring skills to build out an industry around the ocean,” she told the House of Assembly. “Part six of the legislation speaks thoroughly to the issue of training, certification, licensing and registration.”

Caddle said the bill provided a framework for accrediting courses like boat masters and boat technicians, including at a planned Maritime and Seafaring Academy.

“One of the things that we considered was necessary, was training in maritime and seafaring skills and other related skills to be able to build out an industry around the ocean,” the minister of industry, innovation, science and technology said. “I do not want us to overlook the part of the legislation that speaks quite squarely to exactly that ambition of making sure that we have the necessary training and the training structure to be able to make room for all of these areas of work from which Barbadians stand to benefit.

“Part six of the legislation speaks very thoroughly to the issue of training, certification, licensing and registration. It talks about the issuance of the Barbados Small Vessels Learner’s Permit, it talks about the certificates of competency, the different areas like boat masters [and] boat technicians. It goes on to look at public educational or training institutions…. This is the Maritime and Seafaring Academy that is spoken to in the 2018 manifesto. It may not be structured in the way that we expected, but this legislation clearly provides the framework for all of these certifications to be accredited.”

Her comments were echoed by former minister for the blue economy Kirk Humphrey who welcomed the chance for Barbadians to gain globally recognised qualifications.

He cited the STCW – Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping – course as “perhaps the most important thing for people who want to work at sea”.

“We found that in Barbados you could offer the training but you could not offer the certification,” he said. “Barbados has to put itself right now in the position where we have to go to another country to be certified. This legislation in conjunction with the larger piece of legislation, the Merchant Suite [and] the Seafarers legislation, says to the world that Barbados is a serious space.”

He said training would now be offered at the Samuel Jackman Prescod Institute of Technology and the Barbados Institute of Management and Productivity (BIMAP).

A Small Vessel Industry Support Fund in the bill is intended to assist smaller operators who are seeking to grow their businesses or recover from financial setbacks.

Caddle, a former economic affairs and investment minister, said: “I’ve seen cases where they are operators of these small vessels who have not sought and gotten the relevant insurance, or who, having done their best to get what they thought was the right insurance, then have an episode or an issue – some sea swell or storm surge they did not expect – and turns out the insurance that they had does not apply in this case, and then their asset has no value.

“I look forward to seeing how the Small Vessel Industry Support Fund is able to provide some security and some opportunity for those in the sector who want to grow their business and continue to invest in their assets,” she said.