‘Passport to the Future: Investing in Cadets Today’

A pioneering in-depth report on cadets has been launched by international maritime charity Sailors’ Society.

This follows the charity’s trailblazing global wellness and mental health conferences designed exclusively for cadets, which were held in 2021-22.

‘Passport to the Future: Investing in Cadets Today’ is the first report of its kind. Using exclusive and wide-reaching data collected during the conferences, this report provides insight into the minds of Generation Z cadets.

It reveals intriguing regional differences between cadets in Africa and their peers in the Philippines and India and highlights the fears and motivations of the next generation of seafarers and future leaders.

Sailors’ Society CEO, Sara Baade, said: “This report is a first step in hearing the voices of cadets, rather than listening to those who talk about cadets.

“Developing wellbeing solutions for the industry and specifically for cadets must be based on reliable and relevant data and this report will serve as a beacon. It provides insight that can shape future work in seafarer wellness and mental health throughout the maritime industry.”

The report builds on Sailors’ Society’s pioneering wellness training and support programme, the most comprehensive and long-running in the maritime industry. The charity has had a focus on cadets over the past few years as part of its circle of care that encompasses the whole of a seafarer’s career.

The report is sponsored by Bernard Schulte Shipmanagement. Head of Fleet Personnel Development and Compliance at BSM, Stewart Bankier, said: “At BSM we recognise the importance of building a strong, safe, theoretical and practical foundation before going to sea for the first time.

“This report can only aid us in our understanding of the needs and wants of this future generation of seafarers. BSM is immensely proud to support Sailors’ Society in this excellent initiative.” Almost 1,500 cadets from 40 maritime schools across South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia, Angola, Ghana, Ethiopia, Liberia, Mauritius, India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines took part in polls on key areas such as their reasons for becoming a seafarer, deciding factors in choosing a shipping company and their views on diversity and mental health training.

Among those providing industry insight on the report’s data is Captain Kuba Szymanski, Secretary General of InterManager, who said: “I am delighted to see this ground-breaking Sailors’ Society initiative is packed full of insight for our industry. Some 1,500 cadets giving you their opinion – this is impressive and gives a broad picture of how cadets are thinking and feeling.”

‘Passport to the Future: Investing in Cadets Today’ is published on Monday, January 30 at 10.00am BST.

Copies can be downloaded from https://sailors-society.org/cadetreport22