It has been a long time coming but soon, Kwale County will have its first maritime training college. – By Ramadhan Kambi.
The Kwale county government is focusing on the institution to reduce unemployment among youth.
Kwale County is home to the Sh20 billion Shimoni fishing port which is a project of the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).
The training centre will be the third institution offering maritime studies after Technical University of Mombasa and Bandari Maritime Academy.
Last week, Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya launched the multi million project that will see students from the region and its environs enroll for maritime courses.
Governor Mvurya handed over the title deed of the institution to Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha at Chitsakamatsa in Waa, and said that the Sh1.2 billion facility will major it’s training schedule on Blue Economy.
“In line with President Uhuru Kenyatta’s vision on harnessing the blue economy, we are happy that finally, Kwale is realizing this dream of having such an institution,” said Mr Mvurya.
Strategically located on a 40-acre piece of land, the project is expected to serve Kenya and other neighbouring countries of Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi.
Mr Mvurya said the county was already offering bursary scholarships for students taking maritime courses in different maritime institutions.
“This project comes at a time when Sh2.5 billion fund has been pumped into Jumuiya Ya Kaunti Za Pwani(JKP) to support a blue economy project dubbed Go-Blue,” he said.
The blue economy project is funded by the European Union (EU) will soon be launched in Diani, and will involve all the six coastal counties through the Jumuiya ya Kaunti za Pwani.
This will include supporting youth from the Coast region in entrepreneurship, plastic recycling, maritime education and other ocean related activities.
This is the first maritime training institute in the county after Bandari Maritime Academy and Technical University of Mombasa both locates in Mombasa county that offer different courses on shipping and maritime studies.
Mr Mvurya said this was a plan to tap in the potential of the blue economy using the proximity to the Indian Ocean as a major advantage.
About 300 students will be taken in in the first intake once the project is complete.
Kenya has been making its strides in tapping the potential of the blue economy. It is estimated that if properly harnessed, the blue economy would inject up to 380 billion shillings to Kenya’s economy and create 52,000 jobs in the next 10 years.
Mombasa County is also betting on the maritime industry to reduce joblessness among youth.
The devolved unit last year planned to train 250 seafarers in a project funded by the county’s Elimu Fund where Sh8 million was set aside to train them at the Mombasa based maritime academy.
