Last week a team from YEP MED Project, in collaboration with a team from the Chamber of Commerce from Beirut and Mount Lebanon, visited the Port of Beirut. The teams started by visiting the port facilities at the Beirut Container Terminal Consortium (BCTC) container terminal, where the BCTC team presented the diversified operations and services at the terminal, namely: safety, planning, operations, training, and R & D. In addition, the team explored the practical measures that BCTC implemented in response to the Beirut blast to ensure the container terminal resumed operational status promptly and safely.
The YEP MED project is led by ESCOLA Europea-Intermodal Transport alongside partners from med port authorities and maritime training institutes from Italy, Spain, France, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia and Lebanon. The Chamber of Commerce in Beirut is also a key partner in the YEP MED project that aims to develop port-logistics training and vocational resources (TVET). YEP MED has adapted to sector needs and aims to strengthen youth employability and increase local employment opportunities by creating dual-learning programmes with job placements.
The new training model proposed by the YEP MED Project was showcased during the visit and discussed between the Chamber of Commerce and the BCTC team. The new YEP MED project looks to redefine the roles of the teacher and the students through the active participation of the students in the development of the training content. The visit was completed with a wider debate, held between the participants, with a representative of the local freight forwarders group highlighting the need for the sector to be able to rely on trained personnel to face the digital transitions taking place across the industry.
