World Maritime University students in Malta

The Malta Maritime Authority recently hosted a group of students from the World Maritime University (WMU) in Malmö, Sweden, for a field trip in Malta.

The 19 students are reading for a Master's degree in Port Management at the WMU, a training institution within the International Maritime Organisation.

The course participants, who come from 14 countries, already occupy senior positions in their respective port and maritime administrations.

The field trip programme consisted of various visits to different maritime institutions in Malta, relevant to the students' studies, which included the Malta Maritime Authority, with visits to Valletta and Cirkewwa, the Freeport, the Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean, and Sea Malta.

The students were also addressed by members of the local shipping and port community, with a view to acquiring useful elements of local port and shipping operations that complement the theoretical aspect of their studies.

On the last day of their field trip, the students paid a courtesy visit to Transport and Com-munications Minister Censu Galea, who reiterated his ministry's support for the work of IMO and its organs, among which the WMU.

He pointed out that the University's important role was reflected not only in the training of specialised maritime personnel but also in providing a forum where people from different countries and cultures all over the world come together and share their experiences.

MMA, through its Merchant Shipping Directorate, has been hosting these field trips for the last seven years as part of a technical assistance scheme within the framework of an enhanced role for Malta, as a result of its increasing relevance in the maritime world.

The effectiveness of these successive annual field trips of the WMU port management students to Malta has led to the University incorporating the Malta field trip as an integral part of the academic programme of this course.