South Africa’s first dedicated training ship, the SA Agulhas, is already making waves

In 2012 the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) acquired the ice-strengthened polar research vessel, SA Agulhas, as a training ship. SA Agulhas retired from Antarctic service in April 2012 when the replacement vessel, SA Agulhas II was commissioned. The SA Agulhas was repurposed in July 2012 as a training ship, owned by SAMSA and managed by Smit Amandla Marine, with the training of merchant navy cadets from South Africa and the rest of Africa contracted out to South African Maritime Training Academy (SAMTRA).

At the relaunch of the vessel SAMSA CEO, Commander Tsietsi Mokhele said that the intention of this lastest acquisition by SAMSA was to increase the number of merchant navy cadets by tenfold in the years to come. At the moment South Africa produces on average only 120 marine cadets annually. Executive Head of the Centre for Excellence at SAMSA, Sindiswa Nhlumayo, also stated on this occasion that, "Skills shortage is a major challenge for the country, particularly in the maritime sector. This has contributed to a drop in active shipping companies in South Africa, but we believe that with this acquisition, we have the potential to double or even triple the size of the industry and contribute to job creation in years to come.”

Initial Voyage as a Training Ship
On the 4 July, 2012 the SA Agulhas proudly sailed from Cape Town harbour as South Africa’s first dedicated training vessel. On board were 32 excited cadets from Cape Town. She sailed to Durban to collect a further 15 cadets and returned to Cape Town, having visited the ports of East London and Port Elizabeth to raise awareness of career options in the maritime industry.

The Voyage to London
On Friday, 2 November 2012 the SA Agulhas set sail from Cape Town on her first international, commercial voyage. At the send-off SAMSA CEO, Commander Tsietsi Mokhele, told the media that, “The more we keep it in trade, the better for us. It means we can raise funding which we can use for our people.” The voyage to London was in service of a contract secured by SAMSA with the Commonwealth, who wished, as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, to stage an expedition to the Antarctic on board the SA Agulhas whilst merchant navy cadets received training on board. The project is due to run until 2014. When SAMSA was offered the opportunity to service this contract, it was decided that the voyage should have a Pan-African approach with stop-overs at Port Tema in Ghana and Abidjan in Cote d’Ivoire where selected cadets joined their South African comrades.

In London, the SA Agulhas was showcased, berthed on the Thames next to the HMS Belfast during the Jubilee celebrations while discussions took place with international shipping lines, coordinated by SAMSA, for the placement of cadets. The training mission forms part of a programme to up-skill seafarers so that South Africans can perform as officers aboard international vessels. Commander Mokhele said, "We are going to be talking to many shipping lines saying to them: 'These are the ones you can talk to; these are the ones we have, and we have more where these come from”.
Deputy Minister of Transport, Lydia Sindisiwe Chikunga, said that the South African Maritime Sector had the potential to have an impact in the fight against poverty and joblessness, and for this the Minister said the government, through the expertise of SAMSA would, among other measures, increase the capacity of our institutions of higher learning to produce more world class seafarers and to develop a well-functioning and productive cadetship programme that to date had placed one hundred and sixty five cadets on foreign ships to complete their training.
The Coldest Journey
After a successful port call in London, during which Sir Ranulph Fiennes and his Expedition Team plus all the equipment including a helicopter and the necessary transport vehicles were loaded, the SA Agulhas returned to Cape Town in preparation of fulfilling the second part of her Commonwealth contract. This was to transport and deliver the Antarctic winter crossing expedition, led by Sir Ranulph in support of the charity Seeing is Believing to Antarctica. During the voyage various scientific experiments and observations were undertaken for the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Departments of Science and Technology and Environmental Affairs. It is hoped that important scientific information will become available as a result of this research being undertaken in Antarctica during the winter. South Africa stands to benefit immensely from this expedition.

Deputy Minister of Transport, Lydia Sindisiwe Chikunga has commended Commander Mokhele and his SAMSA team for their innovative and creative solutions of addressing these challenges. She said, “Through our involvement in the African Union, South Africa is leading the development of an integrated African Maritime Strategy. It is for this reason that we insist that this vessel is not solely for the benefit of South Africa but the whole African continent.” XX

BOX WITH PIC
SA Agulhas is a South African ice-strengthened training ship and former polar research vessel. She was built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Shimonoseki, Japan, in 1978. SA Agulhas was used to service the three South African National Antarctic Program research bases on Gough Island and Marion Island in the Southern Ocean, and SANAE IV in Antarctica, as well as various research voyages. SA Agulhas retired from Antarctic service in April 2012 when the replacement vessel, SA Agulhas II, was commissioned.