Page 73 - Maritime Book 1

BUILDING CAPACITY
For Eric Nkosi, the real success story lies in capacity creation – and the next generation of men and women who will take us further in the maritime industry.
His maritime journey started in 1996 when he was recruited as a trainee cadet by Transnet after nishing matric.
Following three years at sea and with a Class 3 Deck Of cer quali cation under his belt, he joined the class of 1999 for training in Rotterdam.
He returned to the port system and serviced vessels as a marine pilot until 2009. Those early days were particularly dif cult.
“When we came back from our training in Rotterdam, there were a lot of challenges. We joined a White dominated industry and we were young, so when we went onboard ships – the masters would interrogate us about our ages, quali cations – and judge us based on our appearance before we even had a chance to present ourselves and show what we could offer. That was the main challenge at the time,” he said.
It was when he switched roles in 2009, that South Africa’s maritime transformation really began to click for Eric. He’s all about building capacity, and his current role focuses on the training of future pilots, tug masters, engineers and GPRs across South Africa’s port system.
“We were not sure whether we were going to make it or not, but the young people coming through in the industry now have us to look up to – and they’re con dent in their abilities. They know that they can make it,” he said.
ERIC NKOSI CAPACITY CREATION MANAGER: PORT OF DURBAN
"With a young, capable, and independent crop of mariners honing their skills under the guidance of South African trailblazers the future looks bright. "
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