Welcome to TAAKA Maritime Higher Institute, a pioneer institution in Cameroon that develops a future-ready workforce for the maritime industry. As you may well know, the maritime industry is the backbone of international trade and the global economy. Sea transport offers the cheapest and fastest way of moving the largest quantity of goods across long distances. The world merchant fleet is registered in over 150 nations and there are over 50,000 merchant ships trading internationally. The maritime sector transports approximately 90% of the world’s goods, meanwhile seafaring offers broad employment opportunities that contribute not only to individual livelihoods but also to local economies. Seafarers help ensure the smooth passage of goods by supporting a variety of maritime activities in the shipping sector like working in cargo ships, tankers, container ships, cruise liners, and ferries, which move goods and passengers via sea routes; or working in the maritime cluster sector that focuses on managing and operating ports, terminals, and harbors. The global role of international shipping relies on highly polluting fuels that contribute to 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions and cause a significant environmental toll.
The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) predicts that maritime trade will grow by more than 2% between 2024 and 2028. Over $432 billion (CFA256 trillion) in goods and services come from the marine economy. The marine sector provides 2.3 million jobs annually in shipping, maritime trading or naval activities that cover ships and vessels like bulk carriers, cargo/container ships, tankers, barges, in ports and offshore oils rigs. Most marine transportation workers are employed in the merchant marine, which includes all civilian vessels that transport cargo and passengers.
Careers in the maritime industry include working in the shipping (maintaining the ship’s engine or navigating a vessel) and marine cluster (or onshore) sectors. There is a wide range of options available to those interested in working in the marine shipping sector, from manual labor to highly technical jobs that need education and experience. Some of the most popular such positions are: captains, masters, officers, deckhands, ordinary seaman, able bodied seaman, roustabouts, mates, QMEDs (qualified member of the engine department), engineers, tankermen, riggers, remotely operated vehicle (ROV) technicians, surveyors, cooks, stewards, commercial divers, heavy lift supervisors, radio technicians, logistics coordinators, etc.
Off-shore maritime jobs often require that workers take off days, weeks, or even months away from family and friends. Why, then, would anyone consider working in this industry? The marine industry offers some advantages. Maritime jobs generally pay far more than government and other private-sector jobs. For example, the average monthly salary (in million fcfa) for a deckhand trainee is 2.13, chief cook is 2.42, able bodies man is 2.48, third assistant engineer is 3.87, third mate is 4.46, and chief mate is 7.07. More senior positions like captains earn more than 9.17 million fcfa a month. Seafarers get to travel round the world, visiting the seven continents of the planet (Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America) whenever they dock. Also, the living conditions on a ship are actually usually cleaner than one would image.
The maritime industry now faces two major challenges – (1) maritime decarbonization (zero-emissions business model) which involves reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the global maritime sector, with an overall goal of placing the sector on a pathway that limits global temperature rise to 1.5-degrees Celsius, and (2) digitization, a journey away from traditional methods that have proved to be cost-ineffective, toward technological innovations and automation where Information Technology (IT) systems are integrated, and digitized data support new technological solutions.
This decarbonization and digitization of the merchant marine industry, as well as the training and certification (e.g., STCW) requirements have made demand in the maritime industry for trained seafarers to largely exceed supply. Hundreds of thousands of new green maritime jobs, and maritime reskilling are needed, thus demanding new schools and academies to train the future-ready maritime workforce.
With a coast line of ca 400 km in the tropical eastern Atlantic Ocean, Cameroon has 4 seaports (Douala, Kribi, Limbe and Tiko), and 5 terminals (Ebome, Kole, Kome Kribi, Limboh and Moudi). There are over 26 types of ships sailing under the Cameroon flag, with a majority (55.3%) being general cargo, tankers and vessel ships. Total Cameroon national fleet (Deadweight tonnage) was 4,982 in 2022. Also, the country is party to the international convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW).
TAMAHI is a pioneer, and so far the only institution in Cameroon that offers training for folks interested in working in the maritime industry. We offer courses in different schools that focus amongst other themes, on ship and water safety, nnautical science, maritime economics and management, basic ship repair and maintenance skills, deckhand training, computer science, engineering, naval architecture, celestial navigation, knot tying, rigging, understanding the environment, team work skills, and more. At TAMAHI, we also run the TAAKA Job center dedicated to finding marine job seekers the ideal employer for their unique skills.
You are welcome to join us in this Gulf of Guinea country and be trained by TAMAHI’s dedicated expert staff as a future-ready maritime employee who embraces sustainable shipping practices and emerging technologies.