UNCTAD provides legal training to Maldives ports managers

A total of 22 middle managers working within the Maldives ports authority have this month completed the latest part of an ongoing training programme overseen by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

According to the UNCTAD, the 22 Maldives Ports Ltd officials undertook training on ‘ Administrative and Legal Management’ in order to better understand the legal parameters of their work.

Programme conductor Dr Bénédicte Sage, Law lecturer at University College Cork in Ireland, has claimed the programme was designed to boost understanding of port law both in the context of local and international legal systems.

“This has helped them better understand the relevance of constituting legislation for their day-to-day tasks and for the functions of the port, which in turn has cleared up some important misunderstandings about the role of different actors within the port community, such as Customs, the army, police and coast guard, and the various ministries interacting with the port,” stated Dr Sage.

The training was provided in collaboration with local lawyer Aiminiath Nasreena, who holds a Masters Degree in International Maritime Law.

According to UNCTAD, the participants are next month expected to undergo the final module of their training programme. Once this is concluded, participants will be expected to present a thesis before a panel of experts in order to obtain UNCTAD’s Modern Port Management Certificate.