92 Complete exclusive economic zone course
Ninety-two individuals have successfully completed the 15th Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Management and Operations Course at the Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC).
The participants comprised 22 individuals from some government agencies while the other 70 were members from security agencies in the country and other African sub-regional countries.
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The one-week course was aimed at exposing participants to the key essentials of maritime-related operations, improving regional collaborations and dealing with potential threats to maritime activities in the sub-region.
Commendation
At the closing ceremony of the course last Friday, the Director General of the Ghana Maritime Authority, Mr Thomas K. Alonsi, commended the participants and expressed confidence that the course would adequately enhance their collaborative efforts and also help them to formulate policies. with emphasis on addressing the long-term sustainability of the EEZ.
“I have been reliably informed that your work output during the period has been remarkable. With the excellent delivery of papers and presentations that generated vibrant discourse sessions I want to believe that you have better perspectives on the issues deliberated upon,” he said.
“By this, you have become part of the solution required for the long-term development of our respective institutions and countries. We should be proud of our place in history as people who are contributing towards the security and conservation of our heritage,” Mr Alonsi added.
Enhance your capacities
Mr Alonsi said the continuous discussions of maritime security and seeking appropriate responses to the threats in the maritime environment were very necessary, indicating that it was going to help keep all stakeholders focused on how to sustain the economic potential of the nation as well as the respective countries of the foreign participants.
He further stressed that it was incumbent on the graduates to further enhance the capacities they had developed by putting them into practice in a manner that would yield impactful results individually and collectively, adding that “the knowledge you have acquired can only be useful if it is tailored to ensure the security and conservation of our common heritage.”
He indicated that the African continent had vast maritime opportunities and could be developed as a tool which offered specific mechanisms for the coastal countries to address sustainable developmental challenges.
Mr Alonsi noted that no scale of effort or sacrifice was too small when shaping the interest of the EEZ and said the ultimate interest was to conserve the use of the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development challenges.
He further commended the GAFCSC, especially the lecturers and the moderators of the course, for their efforts and brilliant presentations and urged them to continue to uphold the tenets of the college as a centre of excellence.