REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BATAM -- The Indonesian Maritime Coordinating Ministry and the National Education Ministry plan to revitalize 400 maritime vocational schools in Indonesia to create capable employees in the maritime sector.
"The Maritime Coordinating Ministry, along with the National Education Ministry will revitalize 400 maritime vocational schools throughout Indonesia," the Indonesian Maritime Coordinating Minister Indroyono Soesilo said on Saturday.
The school revitalization is aimed at creating capable maritime employees, who can ably support Indonesia's maritime sector.
The students will also be able to work for an international certificate that will allow them an opportunity to work on foreign ships.
"The students will also receive the International Maritime Organization?s certificate, which will help them work on local and large international ships," Soesilo said.
The minister added that creating reliable maritime employment is more urgent than developing seaports and other maritime facilities.
Additionally, Soesilo said the government plans to construct 24 seaports in Indonesia, including five deep seaports.
The five deep seaports will be built in several provinces, including North Sumatra, East Java, South Sumatra and Papua.
"The constructed Kuala Tanjung Seaport in the North Sumatra Province will have a capacity of 3.5 million tons per year and 400,000 TEUS containers per year, and is expected to be finished by 2018," the minister said, adding that the seaport in Makassar in the South Sulawesi Province will also be finished in 2018.