Maritime leaders gather in Singapore for the inaugural MPLP
17 senior maritime representatives from 11 countries across Asia, Africa and the Caribbean embarked on the inaugural Maritime Public Leaders Programme (MPLP) today at the Nanyang Technological University’s (NTU) Maritime Studies and Infrastructure Systems Divisions, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering.
Organised by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), in partnership with NTU and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) under the Singapore Co-operation Programme, the MPLP aims to strike a balance between both maritime-related and public administration topics and arm the participants with skills and information on the latest trends and best practices in the maritime industry.
The interdisciplinary Programme touches on diverse topics ranging from port planning and management, shipping economics and finance, maritime law and security, to public leadership and governance. Lecturers and speakers will include professors from different schools and institutes at NTU such as the S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies and the Nanyang Business School. Apart from lectures and case studies, participants will also visit Singapore’s various maritime facilities so as to gain valuable insights into the policies and processes that have enabled Singapore to grow into one of the top ports in the world.
Speaking at a welcome dinner for the progamme participants last night, Mr Lam Yi Young, MPA’s Chief Executive, said “The MPLP was conceived to provide a platform for leaders from maritime administrations across the world and industry representatives to interact and exchange experiences and ideas with each other. As an initiative under the umbrella of the Singapore Maritime Institute, the programme will also help develop Singapore as a centre for maritime education and training.”
Associate Professor Edmond Lo, Chair of NTU’s School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, said he is confident the programme will add value to the professional knowledge and expertise of the experienced maritime leaders, offering the ‘Best between East and West’. This is one of NTU’s five peaks of excellence – areas of academic focus which will propel NTU into a great global university by 2015.
“In today’s fast-changing and challenging environment, an interdisciplinary approach is needed to tackle tough issues. By leveraging on NTU’s strengths in engineering, business and public policy, the programme will feature a wide range of inter-related topics which will give these leaders the necessary edge to navigate through the rough seas ahead. Also, they are the ones who will groom the next generation of maritime leaders by imparting valuable lessons learnt from Singapore and beyond,” said the NTU Chair.
Jointly issued by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and the Nanyang Technological University.
About the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) was established on 2 February 1996, with the mission to develop Singapore as a premier global hub port and international maritime centre (IMC), and to advance and safeguard Singapore’s strategic maritime interests. MPA is the driving force behind Singapore’s port and maritime development, taking on the roles of Port Authority, Port Regulator, Port Planner, IMC Champion, and National Maritime Representative. MPA partners the industry and other agencies to enhance safety, security and environmental protection in our port waters, facilitate port operations and growth, expand the cluster of maritime ancillary services, and promote maritime R&D and manpower development.
About Nanyang Technological University
A research-intensive public university, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has 33,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students in the colleges of Engineering, Business, Science, and Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences. In 2013, NTU will enrol the first batch of students at its new medical school, the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, which is set up jointly with Imperial College London.
NTU is also home to four world-class autonomous institutes – the National Institute of Education, S Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Earth Observatory of Singapore, and Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering – and various leading research centres such as the Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute (NEWRI) and Energy Research Institute @ NTU (ERI@N).
A fast-growing university with an international outlook, NTU is putting its global stamp on Five Peaks of Excellence: Sustainable Earth, Future Healthcare, New Media, New Silk Road, and Innovation Asia.
NTU has a satellite campus in Singapore’s science and tech hub, one-north, and is setting up a campus in Novena, Singapore’s medical district. It will also have its first campus in China, the NTU Tianjin College, in 2013.
For more information, visit www.ntu.edu.sg
Singapore, 21 July 2011