The maritime sector could provide alternative for future of young people of La Marina Alta

Monday 28th June 2021 – ÁLVARO MONFORT with Mike Smith

Throughout the last week, different high schools in the Marina Alta region have been discovering first hand about the maritime sector of the region as part of the actions framed within the CREAMA Punt Nàutic programme, the purpose of which is to “stimulate the economic sectors that have suffered setback in recent years or haven’t deployed their full potential”. The maritime sector is one of the them.

The approach of the regional high schools has been to meet with different marinas and Fishermen’s Guilds in the area that have shown their interested in developing an awareness campaign that allows young people who are approaching working age to learn about the benefits and work potential of the maritime sector of the Marina Alta.

Taking advantage of the campaign (and in the centres which have requested it) the basic qualification training programme “Auxiliary and Support Activities for a Ship in Port” has been on offer in recent weeks, an initiative that CREAMA has been promoting. It is aimed at young people between the ages of 16 and 21 who are at risk of dropping out of secondary education without qualifications or have already dropped out. Through the course, the personal maturity of the students is encouraged, providing them with the technical and specific skills of the maritime sector and favouring their future incorporation into working life.

At the beginning of the next school year, the talks and campaign to bring the maritime sector closer to the rest of the high schools in the region will resume, presenting different job profiles and their corresponding qualifications to the students close to the end of their school career.

The Punt Nàutic project has been developing for more than three years and is one of the pillars of the PACTE’MA Agreement for work and local development in the Marina Alta. Through this initiative, it is connecting to the key actors of the maritime and fishing sector in order to make the business and employment opportunities that it treasures more visible.