LEADING Japanese shipping groups plan to build and donate a large training vessel to the state-run Japan Agency of Maritime Education and Training for Seafarers, as the industry rallies to address urgent challenges in maritime workforce development.

Mitsui OSK Lines, NYK Line and K Line, along with the Japanese Shipowners’ Association, said they will work with shipyards to define the specifications of the newbuilding, targeting delivery around 2030.

The move comes as JMETS faces mounting issues, as outlined in a recent report by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

JMETS, which operates eight nationwide maritime schools and five large training vessels, has produced more than 10,000 skilled seafarers since becoming an independent agency in 2001. However, the agency must tackle ageing facilities and vessels, a shortage of instructors and crew, and a declining financial base because of reduced government funding.

The ministry’s “Study Group on JMETS’s Medium-Term Strategy” highlighted that rising fuel costs have reduced the number of days students can train at sea, while the diversity of student proficiency and qualification goals strains the capacity of existing training programmes.

The report also acknowledges that, while a reduction in the number of large training vessels is inevitable, replacement with newer, larger ships is essential to maintaining training capacity and quality.

“We sincerely hope that our donation of this training ship will contribute to the healthy and stable development of training and securing highly skilled Japanese seafarers,” said the joint statement.