Port Authority of Kribi (Cameroon): the human factor, a capital asset

Convinced that its development and efficiency cannot be achieved without a constant evolution of skills, the Port Authority of Kribi is multiplying actions and partnerships towards this purpose. This conviction will notably be translated by the creation of a training centre for port professions. It is also supported by a dynamic communication strategy enabling the port and its employment opportunities to be better known. Attracting new talents also means offering them an attractive living environment. And this is also one of the objectives of the framework agreement between the Port and the City of Kribi. An interview with Patrice MELOM, Director General, Autonomous Port of Kribi (PAK). The Port Authority of Kribi is a member of AIVP since 2017 AIVP – General Manager, in 2018 you signed a partnership agreement with the Port of Antwerp (also an AIVP member). Skills transfer and training is one of the lines developed in the framework of this partnership. What actions has it enabled you to carry out to develop your human capital? Patrice MELOM, General Manager, Port Authority of Kribi (PAK) – That is correct, Port Autonome de Kribi has been linked to Port of Antwerp International (PAI) by a Cooperation Agreement since 2018. Moreover, on 1st July this year the Agreement was renewed by video-conference for a further three years. The Agreement was to have been extended tacitly but we had to sign certain documents because it had been redrafted. The new framework agreement now covers a wider and more ambitious field of activities which is better aligned to the challenges facing the Port of Kribi. The most important areas are: developing its berthing capacity and operational performance; developing the attractiveness of the industrial zone; improving accessibility and connectivity with its hinterland; and achieving harmonious coexistence with the environment through sustainable and inclusive development of its territory of influence. 2018 - Cooperation Agreement PAK - Port of Antwerp International @ PAK Having said that, the recent signing of the PAK/PAI Cooperation Agreement was a good moment to review the first three years of the partnership. I was able to thank the management of PAI in general, and particularly those responsible for APEC (Antwerp Port Training Center), for the assistance they have given PAK in terms of human resource training.In the framework of this Agreement we have basically been able to organise benchmarks with the Port of Antwerp for twenty senior staff of the Port Captains Department and the Development and Environment Department (DAME), to provide a basis for their operational capacities.Unfortunately we must recognise that the COVID-19 pandemic has been a severe set-back to the action plan drafted for implementing the Agreement. Nevertheless, we are quite pleased with what has been achieved and we have made a fresh start since July on a new basis, taking into account the possibilities of more flexible online procedures which can be followed even in times of crisis. AIVP – In 2019 the 1st Kribi General Youth Forum was held. The creation of a training centre in Kribi for port and industrial careers was announced at the Forum. A study was…