Charkin Maritime Academy Gets NBTE’s Accreditation for ND Programmes

Uchechukwu Nnaike

A maritime education and training institution, Charkin Maritime Academy (CMA), situated in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has made public its interim accreditation from the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE).

The accreditation from the NBTE is for CMA to run two critical National Diploma (ND) programmes, namely Nautical Science and Marine Engineering.

It is on record that CMA is one of the first private maritime academies in Nigeria to be given accreditation by the NBTE to run diploma programmes in the two courses.
Already, the school has commenced the process of admitting fresh students for the 2021/2022 academic session, just as it has fixed February 13, 2021 as the date for its entrance examination.

A statement signed by the acting Provost, Dr. Egben Okore, stated that with the NBTE accreditation, more Nigerians and foreigners intending to build a rewarding career at sea can now be trained in the noble profession of the Shipmaster and Marine Chief Engineer without leaving the shores of Nigeria to spend foreign currency for the same or even higher quality of training.

Apparently elated by the development, the founder of CMA, Dr. Charles Wami said: “Receiving accreditation from the NBTE to offer National Diploma in Nautical Science and Marine Engineering in the academy in 2020 has been one of my happiest moments in my four years as CMA founder

“Our passion to build capacity for the Nigerian maritime industry and the need to fill the gap in unmet demands for the admission of young Nigerian school leavers into institutions of higher learning helped us in no small way. I could not be happier for the academy, her governing council, the academic board and staff.”

Wami revealed that to achieve the feat, CMA gave it all it takes in terms of building training infrastructures such as modern classrooms, 200-capacity cadets’ hostel and dining saloon, modern library, Marine Engineering Laboratories and workshops, as well as multi-purpose hall.

Others were the recruitment of qualified and experienced staff (including Master Mariners, Marine Chief Engineers and Maritime Education and Training Experts); procurement of teaching aids, especially marine simulators, namely: Full Mission Bridge; Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS); Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS); Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD); and high voltage; basic and advance dynamic positioning simulators.

The founder added that within the same period, the management of the CMA also constructed additional two standard Survival Pools, lifeboats, life crafts and launching davits; as well as marine diesel engine models.
According to him, CMA also entered into a partnership with international shipping companies to provide sea time experience for the cadets.

He stated that all these were carried out in line with NBTE guidelines for the approval and accreditation of new programmes for the school.

CMA, owned by Charkin Maritime and Offshore Safety Centre (CMOSC) was founded by Wami in 2016. The CMOSC is a training centre that has accreditation from the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Offshore Petroleum Industry Training Organisation (OPITO), Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR); the Nautical Institute (NI) of London, among others to train maritime and offshore industry practitioners.

As a training centre of excellence, the CMOSC is the two-time NIMASA award winner for the ‘Best Maritime Education and Training Institution of the Year’, among other awards from international oil companies (IOCs) and other maritime organisations.
The CMOSC has trained over 12,000 Nigerians and foreign nationals both in STCW maritime courses, as well as oil and gas offshore courses between 2015 and 2019.

According to the statement, as 2021 begins, CMA is poised to commence and deliver its ND programmes in Nautical Science and Marine Engineering with the same quality, zeal and passion it has been known over the years for building capacity for the maritime industry.