By Monireoluwa Lucas

Africa risks losing further ground in the global shipping industry as a shortage of internationally certified seafarers and maritime professionals continues to limit the continent’s ability to compete in an increasingly technology-driven sector.

The Manager of Training and Maritime Centre of Excellence (MCOE) at Nigerian Maritime Services Limited (NSML), Dr Effiong Ekanem-Attah, raised the concern at the 2026 Maritime Training Institute organised by the Association of Maritime Journalists of Nigeria (AMJON) in Lagos.

Ekanem-Attah, who represented the Managing Director of NSML, Abdulkadir Kere Ahmed, said the global maritime industry was becoming increasingly regulated, technology-driven and dependent on skilled professionals capable of operating under international standards.

Speaking on the theme: “The Power of Innovation in a Future-Ready Maritime Training Agenda,”  he said digitalisation, decarbonisation, automation and stricter safety requirements were reshaping shipping and increasing demand for competent maritime professionals.

He said that despite Africa’s strategic maritime location and extensive coastline, the continent had struggled to produce sufficient internationally certified seafarers to meet the demands of the global maritime labour market.

According to him, limited access to quality maritime training, inadequate simulator facilities, accreditation challenges and insufficient opportunities for practical sea-time were among factors responsible for the skills gap.

The situation, he said, had compelled many shipping companies operating in Africa to rely heavily on expatriates for critical technical and operational positions.

“Consequently, many shipping companies operating in and out of Africa have relied heavily on expatriate personnel for critical technical and operational roles,” he said.

Ekanem-Attah said closing the gap would require an integrated maritime manpower development system combining education, professional certification, practical sea-time, mentorship, technology, research and industry collaboration.

He said the NSML Maritime Centre of Excellence on Bonny Island, Rivers State, was established as part of efforts to address longstanding maritime manpower challenges.

According to him, the centre combines maritime training, simulator-based learning, sea-time development, professional certification support, research, consultancy and industry partnerships.

Ekanem-Attah said the centre had secured international accreditations, including ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System, DNV standards for maritime simulator and training centres, United Kingdom Maritime and Coastguard Agency accreditation for six courses, Nautical Institute accreditation for Dynamic Positioning programmes, as well as accreditations from Marshall Islands, Bermuda and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

He said the accreditations would enable Nigerian and other African maritime professionals to obtain globally recognised qualifications locally instead of travelling abroad for specialist training.

The centre, he added, had invested in advanced facilities, including bridge and engine-room simulators and Dynamic Positioning systems, enabling trainees to simulate operational situations, emergency procedures and other risk-sensitive scenarios.

On the challenge of sea-time, Ekanem-Attah said NSML’s Seafarers Continuous Development Programme had provided opportunities for young professionals seeking to meet certification requirements.

He said 272 cadets had completed sea-time training through the programme, while another 54 were either in college or onboard vessels progressing towards professional certification.

“As of August 2026, NSML employs over 700 seafarers and remains the largest employer of qualified Nigerian seafarers,” he said.

Also speaking, the Lagos Port Complex Manager of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mr Adebowale Lawal, who represented the Managing Director, Dr Abubakar Dantsoho, said technology alone could not transform the maritime sector without adequate human capital.

Lawal said digitalisation, artificial intelligence, automation, robotics and data-driven logistics were changing global port and shipping operations.

He said the NPA had deployed technology to improve efficiency, transparency, safety and service delivery, citing the Electronic Call-Up System, Electronic Access Control, digital revenue systems, vessel management platforms and the ongoing development of the Port Community System.

According to him, the Authority was also aligning its processes with the National Single Window to promote greater integration and electronic exchange of information among maritime stakeholders.

“These initiatives demonstrate that the future of our ports will depend increasingly on people who understand and can effectively deploy technology,” he said.

Lawal said maritime training institutions must produce professionals who were technically competent, innovative, adaptable and digitally literate, as the industry moves towards smart ports, autonomous and connected ships, cybersecurity systems, green shipping technologies and data-driven decision-making.

He urged greater collaboration among government, industry and training institutions to develop the manpower required to make Nigeria’s maritime sector globally competitive.

“Let us remember that innovation is not only about machines and technology; it is about people, ideas and the courage to do things better,” he said.

Lawal added that sustained investment in skills development would help Nigeria build a workforce capable of driving safer, smarter, greener and more efficient maritime and port operations.

By Oluwayanmife Lucas, with agency reports

OPEC+ members yesterday at a virtual meeting agreed to keep oil production steady in October. This decision thus puts a stoppage to a six-month run of output increases as the group shifts its focus to determining new production quotas for 2027.

In a press statement uploaded on OPEC website shortly after the meeting, it noted that the producers agreed to have OPEC+ keep its oil output policy unchanged for ‌October as the producer group needs to agree new quotas before deciding its next output steps.

The meeting of seven core OPEC+ members — Saudi Arabia, ​Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan and Oman — comes as the Iran war continues to ​disrupt oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, limiting OPEC+’s influence over prices ⁠and market share.

The pause comes as the war with Iran continues to disrupt oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, reducing the ability of OPEC+ supply decisions to influence crude prices and the group’s market share.

Meanwhile oil prices continue its upward surge wit Brent yesterday selling at $96.28 and West Texas Intermediate selling at $91.48 respectively per barrel.

In August, OPEC+ agreed its production boost for September, completing a phased rollback ​of a 1.65 million-barrel-per-day supply cut first agreed in 2023. Despite the agreed production increases, ​the group made up of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, including Russia, still produces far below its targets because of the war.

“OPEC+ currently has ​very limited power over the physical oil market. The group ​can change production targets on paper, but it cannot guarantee that those barrels will be produced or ‌actually ⁠reach the market. The focus now shifts away from monthly production adjustments and towards the much more consequential debate over 2027,” said Jorge Leon of Rystad Energy.

OPEC+ still has another layer of production cuts in place, covering most members of the 21-country group until the end of 2026. Before the group decides ​how to unwind the ​cuts and return production ⁠to the market, it needs to review members’ oil production capacity to set 2027 output baselines, which form the basis for quotas.

According to sources who spoke to Reuters, this ​debate will likely happen later in 2026 and hence OPEC+ is ​likely to pause ⁠its output increases for the fourth quarter, sources earlier told Reuters.

Actual production remains well below the group’s targets amid the war and disruptions to regional oil flows. The gap means previously announced increases have had a more limited effect on physical supply than the headline quotas suggest.

The 21-member alliance, which includes the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other producers, still has another layer of production cuts scheduled to remain in place through the end of 2026.

Before deciding how quickly those remaining cuts can be unwound, members need to review their production capacity and establish new 2027 output baselines. Those baselines are critical because they determine the individual production quotas allocated to members.

Discussions over the new baselines are expected later this year, making a pause in output increases during the fourth quarter increasingly likely.

The expected decision also comes at an unusual time for the producer alliance. With the Strait of Hormuz disrupting exports, the amount of crude reaching global markets is being shaped more heavily by wartime shipping constraints than by adjustments to OPEC+ production targets.

That has limited the group’s traditional ability to manage supply and influence prices through coordinated output changes.

The seven countries reiterated their collective commitment to achieve full conformity with the Declaration of Cooperation.