British charity Seafarers UK today called on both the government and the UK shipping industry to invest in training of British merchant navy officers to meet what it described as a “huge manpower shortfall”.
A recent report from the International Chamber of Shipping has revealed a current shortfall of 16,500 deck and engineer officers. The forecast global shortage of maritime officers stands at 92,000 by 2020 and 147,500 by 2025.
The demand for officers has increased by 24% from 2010. But since then the number being trained in the UK has hardly changed. Less than 1,000 British cadets each year commence training for merchant navy careers.
Seafarers UK’s director general, Commodore Barry Bryant, said: “There is an urgent need for serious investment in our young people who want to work at sea, both from the government by allocating more funds for training, and from the shipping industry by ensuring that all British cadets are guaranteed time at sea to become qualified. Without increased investment in the UK’s maritime skills base, we will face a serious shortage of men and women who in due course will move from seafaring to shore-based roles, such as port operations, crew manning services, shipbroking, chartering and insurance. A large part of the nation’s and the City of London’s maritime competence will rely on these future UK seafarers.”
