New KMA directive on seafarer training gets industry backing

Stakeholders have welcomed a new notice from the Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) regarding the implementation of amendments to the trading of seafarers. 

Industry players say the amendment to the Standard of Training Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) Code on Personal Safety and Social Responsibilities (PSSR) training signifies a crucial development in the governance of seafarer welfare in Kenya.

Independent maritime consultant and former Secretary General of the Seafarers Union of Kenya (SUK) Andrew Mwangura said while framed as a technical regulatory update, the directive carries deeper implications for maritime labour standards, institutional preparedness, and the lived realities of seafarers working in increasingly complex and high-risk environments. 

“By formally integrating training on the prevention of and response to violence, harassment, bullying, and sexual assault into the STCW framework, Kenya is aligning itself with a global recognition that safety at sea is not only a matter of firefighting, survival craft, or personal protective equipment, but also of dignity, respect, and psychological security,” he said.

Already licensed maritime training institutions like the Mount Kenya University Malindi Maritime Academy, Harbourview Maritime Institute, and the Bandari Maritime Academy have heeded the directive and set out to offer the one-day mandatory BT PSSR course, which includes additional competences on prevention and response to violence and harassment, sexual harassment, bullying and sexual assault. 

For decades, the maritime sector has operated under a narrow definition of safety that privileged physical hazards while remaining largely silent on social harm. 

“This silence has been particularly costly for junior crew, women seafarers, cadets, and migrant workers, who often operate within rigid hierarchies where abuse can flourish unreported. The International Maritime Organisation’s adoption of Resolution MSC.560(108) acknowledges this reality and reframes personal safety as inseparable from social responsibility,” Mwangura explained.

Another former SUK official, Steve Owaki, added that Kenya’s decision to implement these amendments through the maritime regulator is laudable, not merely as compliance with an international convention, but as an affirmation that human rights at sea matter as much as operational efficiency.

However, the real test of this directive will not lie in the wording of the notice but in the quality, accessibility, and credibility of its implementation.

Mwangura noted that requiring maritime training institutions to revise their PSSR curriculum by adding three hours dedicated to the new competence is a necessary first step, but it also raises legitimate concerns. 

“Training on violence and harassment cannot be treated as a box-ticking exercise or reduced to abstract definitions.  If poorly delivered, rushed, or inadequately contextualised to shipboard realities, it risks becoming symbolic rather than transformative,” Mwangura pointed out.

“KMA must, therefore, ensure that curriculum approval, instructor qualification, and assessment standards are robust enough to translate policy intent into behavioural change at sea.”

He reiterated that equally important is the impact on seafarers who already hold valid PSSR certificates. The requirement for an upgrading course, while justified by the introduction of new competencies, has cost, time, and access implications that cannot be ignored.

He noted that many Kenyan seafarers are on short contracts, irregular rotations, or overseas assignments that limit their ability to attend shore-based training at short notice.

Mwangura explained further that without careful coordination, flexible scheduling, and reasonable pricing by approved institutions, the upgrading requirement could unintentionally penalise the very workers it seeks to protect. “Compliance must not become a barrier to employment, particularly in a labour market already marked by insecurity and intense competition,” he said.

The KMA notice, Mwangura said, correctly assigns shared responsibility across the maritime ecosystem. 

He called on all the licensed training institutions to align curricula and seek re-approval, and shipowners and managers facilitate timely upgrading while urging seafarers themselves to plan proactively. 

“Seafarers often have the least bargaining power, and exhortations to ‘plan proactively’ ring hollow if employers do not grant leave, cover training costs, or recognise certificates promptly. Effective implementation, therefore, demands active oversight by the Kenya Maritime Authority to ensure that responsibility does not quietly shift downward to individual workers,” he observed.

Mwangura, at the same time, noted that beyond compliance, this amendment offers Kenya an opportunity to strengthen its maritime reputation. 

He said as the country positions itself as a regional hub for maritime training, labour supply, and port services, the treatment of seafarers will increasingly shape its standing with international shipowners and regulators. 

“A workforce trained not only in survival techniques but also in ethical conduct, conflict prevention, and respectful communication enhances operational safety and reduces the reputational and legal risks associated with abuse at sea. In this sense, the amended PSSR framework is not a burden but an investment in professionalism,” said Mwangura.