Maritime students urge NIMASA to ease certification rules

…Movement seeks Lagos marine ministry, launches three-month statewide engagement

By Adeola Badru

The Maritime Students for Tinubu and Hamzat Movement (MSTM) has urged the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to introduce transitional arrangements and financial relief for seafarers affected by new certification requirements.

The movement warned that regulatory changes should not impose excessive financial burdens on students and young maritime professionals seeking to obtain the qualifications required to practise.

It also called on the Lagos State Government to establish a dedicated Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy to coordinate the state’s maritime resources, create jobs and strengthen youth participation in the sector.

The Convener of MSTM, Omotayo Temitope, made the calls during the movement’s inaugural meeting, town hall engagement and press conference in Lagos.

He said professional standards must be upheld without making it unnecessarily difficult for aspiring maritime officers to acquire the qualifications required to practise.

Temitope said the circular on the implementation of the Merchant Shipping Regulations 2025 had introduced additional course and certification requirements, creating administrative and financial challenges for aspiring maritime officers.

While affirming the movement’s support for strict regulatory compliance, he said the cost of implementing new requirements should not be borne entirely by students and young professionals.

“While we firmly support high professional standards, the immediate human and financial burden of regulatory shifts must not fall entirely on students and young professionals,” he said.

The convener stressed that MSTM did not support shortcuts or any compromise of professional standards but wanted an implementation process that took into account the circumstances of those affected.

He urged NIMASA to engage transparently with maritime institutions, student representatives and seafarer associations to identify and document cases of hardship arising from the new requirements.

He also called on the agency to consider subsidised access to newly mandated courses and structured relief measures to address outstanding certification challenges.

According to him, such measures would help sustain professional standards while preventing regulatory changes from creating additional barriers for aspiring seafarers.

Movement backs Lagos Blue Economy initiatives

Temitope also expressed confidence in the Special Adviser on Blue Economy to the Lagos State Governor, Oluwadamilola Emmanuel, citing efforts to harness the state’s ocean and aquatic resources.

He referenced initiatives such as the Omi EKO Project, saying Lagos had significant opportunities to deploy its marine resources to promote tourism, fisheries, environmental sustainability and commercial enterprise.

However, he urged the state government to ensure that young people, particularly maritime students, cadets and residents of riverine communities, benefited directly from such initiatives.

He called for practical training, cadetship berths and clearly defined employment pathways to equip young people with the skills and experience needed to participate in the maritime industry.

MSTM seeks dedicated ministry

The National Coordinator of MSTM, Oyewale Elijah Omokoyejo, called on the Lagos State Government to give serious consideration to establishing a dedicated Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

Omokoyejo said the state’s extensive coastline, inland waterways, port infrastructure and riverine communities required coordinated administration beyond water transportation.

He said a dedicated ministry would provide a unified institutional framework for managing inland shipping, fisheries and aquaculture, marine tourism, environmental protection, offshore logistics and youth skills acquisition.

According to him, the proposed ministry would also strengthen the link between maritime education and employment by connecting academic training with practical industry experience and professional opportunities.

He said the initiative could ensure that the state’s maritime resources were managed under a coordinated policy framework that supported economic activities and expanded opportunities for young people.

Movement begins statewide consultations

On the movement’s political orientation, Omokoyejo said MSTM supported the political vision of President Bola Tinubu and Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, but stressed that its responsibilities to maritime students extended beyond electoral activities.

He said the movement intended to build a sustainable platform for addressing the practical challenges facing students and young professionals, irrespective of political cycles.

“Political support gives the movement a platform to engage, but service to maritime students is what gives that platform true meaning,” Omokoyejo said.

He identified limited access to sea-time opportunities, certification difficulties and post-graduation unemployment as structural challenges requiring systematic attention from government and industry stakeholders.

To better understand these challenges, the national coordinator announced the commencement of a three-month statewide engagement campaign covering maritime institutions, technical colleges and riverine communities across Lagos State.

He said the campaign would involve campus visits, town hall meetings and community consultations to document the experiences of cadets, marine engineering students and young people in underserved coastal communities.

According to him, the exercise would enable maritime students and other young people to present their concerns directly and ensure their needs were adequately reflected in policy discussions.

Omokoyejo said the findings would be compiled into a document to be known as the Maritime Students Agenda, outlining students’ concerns and priorities and providing a basis for engagement with government and industry stakeholders.

The document is expected to highlight the practical difficulties confronting young people seeking to enter the maritime sector and serve as a reference for discussions on policies and programmes affecting their education, professional certification and employment prospects.

In their joint declaration, Temitope and Omokoyejo reaffirmed MSTM’s commitment to bridging the gap between student advocacy, government policies and maritime industry development.

They said the future of Nigeria’s maritime and Blue Economy sector depended partly on the ability to train, support and integrate young people into the industry.

“When maritime students are properly trained, supported, and included in national economic planning, Nigeria’s entire maritime and Blue Economy sector will grow stronger and more resilient,” they said.