TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Minister of Education and Culture Anies Baswedan and Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Indroyono Susilo decided to make improvements in some 900 maritime and fishery vocational schools to better prepare Indonesia's human resources for maritime development.

The quality of vocational schools will be improved to meet the standard of certification set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the chief minister noted in a statement as quoted by Antara News.

The two ministers also agreed to name 10 maritime vocational schools, including those in West Java, Central Java, East Java, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, East Kalimantan, Maluku, Tual, and North Sulawesi, as role models.

The ministers will also recruit experienced instructors, among others, from the Indonesian Navy to teach diving, impart basic safety training, and provide training on the use of bridge simulators in the schools.

Minister Susilo noted that for imparting education in fishery and seaweed agribusiness, the schools' curricula will comprise 70 percent practical knowledge and 30 percent theory-based knowledge. With regard to sailing practice activities, the students will be involved in the Nusantara Jaya (Great Archipelago) Expedition 2015, which will deploy 88 boats to sail in the eastern Indonesian waters.

Furthermore, 20 students will be selected to participate in a goodwill sail to Milan, Italy, in May-June 2015 onboard the warship KRI Banjarmasin-592. The maritime vocational schools' study programs include fishing boat nautical, fishing boat techniques, merchant boat nautical, merchant boat techniques, fishery agribusiness, and seaweed agribusiness.

ANTARA NEWS