Maritime manpower expertise

To further develop Singapore as an international maritime centre (IMC), the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) places great emphasis on building a skilled workforce that is able to meet the manpower needs of the maritime industry.

To help promote and strengthen the maritime cluster in Singapore, the MPA has set up an S$80 million Maritime Cluster Fund (MCF).

One of the many tasks of the MCF is to attract talent from a variety of fields to join the maritime industry. A key platform to raise the awareness and interests in maritime careers, as well as outreach activities and networking opportunities, has been the Maritime Outreach Network or MaritimeONE.

Besides mounting maritime education programmes and publicity efforts to win new entrants into the industry, the MCF also co-sponsors a wide variety of continuous learning programmes to benefit local employees of maritime companies operating in Singapore. S$50 million from the MCF has been set aside to enhance maritime manpower development as well as to develop local training infrastructure and capabilities.

Funds from the MCF are targeted at promoting manpower development in those maritime services that have high value-add and are knowledge based.

Schemes and programmes currently available under the MCF are as follows:

• MCF Course Fee Subsidy (CFS): Subsidies are available for approved maritime-related courses and seminars.
• Maritime Attachment Programme (MAP): Under this programme, Singapore-based maritime companies may sponsor promising local employees for attachments at their overseas offices.
• Overseas Trainer Attachment Programme (OTAP): The expertise of local employees can be enhanced through training conducted by staff or trainers from the overseas offices of maritime companies.
• Joint Maritime Scholarship Scheme (JMSS): With co-funding from the MCF, Singapore-based maritime companies can sponsor promising employees for full-time postgraduate maritime programmes in local or foreign universities.
• Local Maritime Part-Time Postgraduate Scholarship Programme (LMPS): With co-funding from the MCF, Singapore-based maritime companies can sponsor promising employees for part-time postgraduate maritime programmes in local universities.
• MPA Professorships: The MPA has set aside S$16 million to bring to Singapore visiting professors and distinguished visitors in various maritime disciplines to conduct undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
• Maritime Industrial Attachment Programme (MIAP): Undergraduates in both maritime-related courses and other disciplines can experience working in a maritime environment while receiving a student attachment allowance.

For more information on the MCF and how it can help you, contact the MCF Secretariat at

Tel: (+65) 6375 1922

Email: MCF@mpa.gov.sg [link mailto:MCF@mpa.gov.sg]