YEP MED in Marseille: 25 new arrivals in shipping!
The Grand Port Maritime de Marseille-GPMM (GPMM), partner of the YEP MED project, launched the international training "Digitalisation of a transit operation" through AFTRAL-ISTELI (Institut Supérieur du Transport Et de la Logistique Internationale) and the Institute of Marseille Fos during the institutes’ March 2022 session.
The two training organisations have registered a total of 25 trainees, who were introduced to the freight forwarding profession in general and the use of a fully virtual platform in particular. The challenge was daunting as the training was international, with instruction given partly in English, and the rhythm was based on a real situation, while the trainees were either beginners or nearly beginners. But the challenge was overcome in the end, in particular thanks to the unfailing involvement of two individuals from the project - Stéphanie Pelazza from the Institute of Marseille Fos and Julien Berbigier from AFTRAL, alongside the support given by the staff of the Escola Europea in Barcelona, the leader of the YEP MED project.
The in-person instruction was given on the premises of the Henri Leroy High School. The professional experts who shared their expertise during the course were Angélique Roditis from MGI (Marseille Gyptis International) in charge of the Cargo Community System theme; Pierre Ferret, maritime expert on the Cold Chain and the diversity/specificity of containers; and Eric Slominski, expert in Dangerous Goods. The rest of the content was delivered by the YEP MED teachers remotely, resulting in a hybrid training that allowed the trainees to discover the profession of a freight forwarder.
Learning by doing was the modus operandi of the YEP MED project during this course. This teaching method has had its challenges, particularly for people who are distant from training and employment.
We have succeeded in sourcing women and young people out of school; in particular through the Cnam PACA, the Maison de l’Emploi and the PLIE of Port Saint Louis du Rhône, which are all stakeholders in the project
This training is only the beginning of the collaboration with local players involved inintegration, employment and training within the port community. Another course, covering a broader spectrum, will be offered next May and will focus on the discovery of port and maritime trades. Here again, the format will be a question of learning by doing since this 5-day course will be punctuated by lessons in the morning and company visits in the afternoon. “We are expecting about thirty trainees” confided Philippe Guillaumet, head of the International Relations department of the GPMM. “We want to stick to the ambitions of YEP MED project, namely: to make professions in the port noticeable and to make the NEETs undertsand these professions. The private companies of the port are counting on us, and we will not disappoint them”.
Thus, until September 2023, the GPMM will continue to work on the deployment of training, conferences, surveys and studies in order to better link the need for labour and trained profiles, to make sure that there are more well-skilled arrivals in Marseille..
AFTRAL-ISTELI, Cnam PACA, Aix Marseille University and the Institut by Marseille Fos are already stakehodlers in the YEP MED project... Will other major players in the area join this great dynamic? The challenge lies in the continuation of these actions beyond European funding to ascertain a long-term teaching methodology that prepares future professionals with in-demand market skills of the port community.