OCHA and APEC will collaborate in the development, promotion and carrying out of the training courses for dockers. OCHA will be responsible for developing the courses and providing the trainers in Belgium and abroad, while APEC will take care of the international promotion and coordination with international delegations. The two parties have defined the terms of their collaboration in a Memorandum of Understanding, which also aims to promote a positive image of the port of Antwerp and its highly skilled workers abroad, in particular in other maritime countries.

This MoU and the corresponding collaboration in turn have grown out of another Memorandum of Understanding that was signed with Secretaria de Portos da Presidencia da Republica in Brazil. In addition to local seminars what were organised by APEC in the main port cities of Brazil, various ‘Train the Trainer’ courses were given for Brazilian dock workers in collaboration with OCHA.

“I am very glad to have followed this course, as it has been an important milestone in my career as a dock worker,” says Valdo Alvarenga who attended the ‘Train the Trainer’ course along with 11 other colleagues. “In addition to its professionally equipped facilities OCHA has highly qualified instructors who employ advanced training methods. With their help my colleagues and I were able to receive modern training with the focus on safety and efficiency.”

More information about OCHA and APEC

OCHA

OCHA, the training institute for dock workers in the port of Antwerp, has many years of experience in teaching the necessary skills, raising the level of safety consciousness and developing leadership among dockers. It provides practice-oriented courses for dock workers, focusing mainly on dealing with the various types of cargo and operating heavy machinery and cranes. OCHA also has state-of-the-art simulators for teaching them how to operate straddle carriers, mobile cranes and gantry cranes in a safe, efficient way. More than 450 training sessions are organised every year in the 35,000 m² training facility, including ‘Train the Trainer’ courses. OCHA collaborates closely with the Antwerp stevedoring and port companies, with training in the very latest techniques being included in its courses.

APEC-Antwerp/Flanders Port Training Center

APEC-Antwerp/Flanders Port Training Center has been operating as a training institute affiliated with Antwerp Port Authority since 1977. As such it has in-depth know-how in training administrative personnel and managers. Its short-term, practice-oriented, interactive seminars ensure effective transfer of know-how in all aspects of modern port activities. Collaboration between the public and private port companies forms one of the basic foundations. APEC also sends experts to lecture abroad on subjects such as “Commercial & Marketing Strategy of a port,” “Concessions Management,” “Port Operations,” “Port Security” etc. in countries including among others Morocco, South Africa, Brazil, Surinam, Haiti, Thailand, Vietnam and India. APEC is able to call upon an extensive network of public and private sector bodies around the world, so that course participants can draw upon a wide range of expertise.