SPECIAL FEATURE
The Maritime Economy Half-a-billion rand has been spent to make Saldanha ready for investment.
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hen the maritime sector takes off, the graduates of the Lawhill Maritime Centre in Simon’s Town are going to be well placed to pick and choose their career path. With South Africa intensely focused on properly exploiting the Oceans Economy, something that has lain dormant for a long time, the fact that the Lawhill Maritime Centre won another international award in 2018 has some significance. The most recent award for the centre, which trains pupils from grade 10 to grade 12, is the Seatrade Africa, Middle East and India Education and Training Award, which was handed over in Dubai in October 2018. Subjects offered at the centre include nautical sciences, maritime economics and electronic navigation systems. The school is funded by a variety of companies (such as Safmarine Container WESTERN CAPE BUSINESS 2019
Lines, Grindrod and SMIT Amandla Marine), state organisations (Transnet National Ports Authority and the South African Maritime Safety Authority) and private foundations. Educational commentator Jonathan Jansen wrote in the The Times that the centre “reminds us what our country can still become – without any direct state funding”. The state is directly funding several other projects. Operation Phakisa is an initiative of the South African government to fast-track parts of the National Development Plan (NDP). The focus is on delivery and results, with strict timelines. “Phakisa” means “hurry up” in Sotho. One of the focus areas within Phakisa is the Oceans Economy programme. The Oceans Economy is no longer just a concept talked about at conferences, it is a reality that is starting to have an impact on South Africa with other training organisations such as the South
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