I refer to the letter, “Seafaring offers young people a meaningful and rewarding career” (Jan 21).

The maritime industry is an important backbone of the global economy which Singapore and its citizens have greatly benefited from.

However, our ability to produce quality, trained personnel for the maritime sector is limited as there are few pathways other than graduating from the Singapore Maritime Academy at Singapore Polytechnic.

I urge the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore to expand the scope of the Tripartite Maritime Scholarship to allow recipients to study at educational institutions other than the Singapore Maritime Academy, while retaining the existing bond requirements.

I also urge the Ministry of Education to introduce more maritime-related courses at the Institute of Technical Education, polytechnics and universities, to increase the number of trained maritime professionals at all levels in Singapore.

Having more quality maritime graduates from Singapore would cement our position as a major player in the international maritime industry. 

Kenny Chua Chien Yee