Close to 300 Samoan sailors are currently employed on cruise ships and cargo vessels around the world, says the Minister of Works Transport and Infrastructure.

There are currently 265 Samoan sailors working on cruise ships with 33 current sailors to increase their total to 298, according to new figures released by the Ministry in a statement issued late Tuesday.

There will be more sailing crew who will depart Samoa in November and December this year, with the aim to have 400 to 500 sailors employed on board Mediterranean Shipping Company (M.S.C) vessels by the end of the year.

"The challenges presented by the pandemic are undeniable but our input to recover Samoa's economy is vital and is estimated to inject close to 40 million tala through private remittances by sailors to their families here if we achieve our target of seafarer employment," reads the statement issued by the Minister.

According to the statement, Samoan seafarers now have the chance to work at ‘officer level’ ranking, which is an opportunity being offered for the first time to Samoans through the Samoa Shipping Services.

"The new employment opportunity is a dream come true for S.S.S. and Government after years of efforts to secure these excellent opportunities for our sailors, following 40 plus years of partnership with the Mediterranean Shipping Company (M.S.C)," the statement reads.

"These golden opportunities are fundamental for our Samoan sailors to reach new heights in the seafaring profession on the international arena.

"The employment opportunities have been advertised publicly for qualified Samoan seafarers both local and abroad who are interested to apply."

The statement also reveals that there is a very limited number of qualified Samoan seafarers who have attained the required qualifications at Classes 3, 2 and 1 to sustain these officer level opportunities. 

"Additionally, the required courses to qualify at these levels are not offered at the local School of Maritime Training at [national University of Samoa]," the statement reads.

"Going forward, it is vital for Government to make available Seafaring Scholarships in New Zealand, Australia or Fiji to ensure that Samoa has a sufficient pool of qualified seafarers at officer rank level to accommodate and sustain these opportunities for our sailors.

"The placement of the first request of employment by our business partners Mediterranean Shipping Company had been put on hold since September 2020 when all cruise ships ceased operations because COVID19 was stretching and fuming at the time.

"In April 2021, S.S.C commenced its recruitment process to prepare the deployment of the first group of sailors in collaboration with Disaster Advisory Committee (D.A.C)/National Emergency Operation Center (N.E.O.C) to ensure all health and immigration requirements were met."