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Global training initiatives for women in maritime offer valuable insights for European seafarer unions
10 September 2024
UK, Dutch, and Swiss seafarer unions could find the International Maritime Organization (IMO)'s training initiatives for women in ASEAN and Pacific regions provide valuable insights for their own campaigns and activities to break down barriers to careers at sea.
SMART-C Women is part of the IMO's suite of Sustainable Maritime Transport Training Programme initiatives. It supports female maritime professionals from the ASEAN and Pacific regions to strengthen their competencies in environmental and digital technologies through online and on-site training.
Women have access to digital training, fellowships and important career networking opportunities.
Project Manager Yeongjoo Baek explained: 'The SMART-C Women project has primarily focused on empowering women in the maritime sector, emphasizing digitalization and environmental competencies.
'The programme's gender-specific elements, particularly in fostering women's leadership and the mentoring opportunities through global networking and fellowships, have been outstanding and offer valuable insights for broader application.
'For European members, especially in the UK, Dutch, and Swiss seafarer unions, these initiatives could be seen as providing valuable insights on how to enhance gender diversity and leadership within their ranks – particularly the importance of networking, mentoring, leadership skills training, practical experience.'
Ms Baek said IMO had receive positive feedback from participants in the SMART-C Women training course. Many participants in the programmes held so far highlighted the importance of networking and the exchange of ideas and good practices with other women colleagues from different countries, the assessment of intersectionality, and the impact of other gender-related dynamics.
What is SMART-C?
The SMART-C Women (SMART stands for Sustainable Maritime Transport Cooperation) Project aims to contribute towards gender equality by increasing employment opportunities for women in developing countries in the maritime sector. It complements existing IMO training opportunities for women.
Working in collaboration with IMO’s regional Women in Maritime Association (WIMAs), training will be provided to help women advance their careers in related industries by, for example, gaining educational qualifications in environmental and digital technologies that can help prepare them for emerging opportunities within the maritime sector.
The project is the result of an agreement signed between IMO and the Republic of Korea for the launch of the first thematic project with Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding that specifically focuses on women in maritime.
Four key pillars of the Project:
- online and field training on maritime matters
- fellowships
- global networking and information sharing
- consultancy to develop national plan for empowering women in the maritime sector
Image: IMO Flickr/Women in Maritime
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