Students of Accra Girls Senior High School have been urged to consider careers in the maritime sector as the enormous opportunities the sector offers are largely untapped.

Speaking at a workshop organized for senior high school students in commemoration of the World Ocean Day 2021, organized by the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Institute (GoGMI) in partnership with the Development of Oceans Technical Capacity with African Nations (DOTCAN) and Nexus Coastal Resource Management Ltd, both based in Canada,

Gertrude Ohene-Asienim, the country manager of OY Offshore Limited said, "the ocean is our life support system as it provides an array of resources upon which many livelihoods are developed, regulates our climate, absorbs harmful atmospheric gases and generates oxygen.

"Therefore it is imperative that we do all we can to protect it from overexploitation and degradation.

GoGMI's representative, Dr Alberta Sagoe, urged the students to disabuse their minds that careers in the maritime sector are made for only men.

She added that the maritime sector is accommodative of all kinds of profession and is not restrictive in any way.

Dr John York Abaidoo, the Dean of Graduate Studies at the Regional Maritime University (RMU) encouraged the students to consider enrolment at the RMU to pursue studies that will propel their career in the maritime industry.

The Ghana Navy was represented by Lt. Commander Michael Agyare Asiamah, who shared a detailed presentation on the navy’s primary role in protecting the nation's maritime space and other functions it performs in collaboration with other stakeholders in the maritime sector.

The president of DOTCAN, Prof. Doug Wallace emphasized on the need to engage young people in matters related to the development of nations' blue economies and pledged his organisation's support in fostering technical capacity across the African Atlantic Region.

The one-day sensitisation program sought to broaden the understanding of students on the connection of human life to the ocean, build a sense of responsibility towards the protection of the oceans and widen their minds on considering careers in the maritime sector in the future.

World Ocean Day
Oceans Day is a United Nations initiative which was first declared in 1992, following the UN conference on environment and development. In 2008, 8th June was officially designated as World Ocean Day, with a different theme each year.

The day is celebrated annually to raise global awareness of the benefits humans get from the ocean and our individual and collective duty to use its resources sustainably.

It also creates a platform to celebrate and appreciate what the ocean provides, from the oxygen we breathe to the inspiration it provides artists. The theme for 2021 is "The Ocean: Life & Livelihoods".

This year’s celebration

As part of this year’s celebration, the maiden edition of a quiz competition on Ocean Literacy was organized by the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Institute (GoGMI) in partnership with Development of Oceans Technical Capacity with African Nations (DOTCAN) and Nexus Coastal Resource Management Ltd.

This was organised to test the students' knowledge on ocean-related issues and also foster networking among the Ghanaian and Canadian students.

The competition which was held virtually, involved students from Accra Girls Senior High School, Ghana and Yarmouth Consolidated Memorial High School, Nova Scotia, Canada.

The contestants were tasked to answer a number of multiple choice and open-ended questions and were awarded with various prizes, ranging from laptops, tablets, mobile phones and smart watches.

At the end of the competition Eva Essel, Janet Abrafi Ofori, Princess Nyarko, Anastasia Ayums Akparibo and Gladys Ayebia Ashong won the top five positions respectively.

The celebration was crowned with the sensitization workshop on ocean health and maritime jobs for more 300 students at the Accra Girls Senior High School, where various speakers treated the students to different presentations and discussion on the topics.

The workshop was supported by Twellium Industries Limited, Everpure Water and Nkunim supermarket.

GoGMI is a ‘think-tank’ for maritime strategic thinkers, practitioners and allies to interact, share ideas and research into strategic maritime affairs affecting the Gulf of Guinea Region.