Baleària, awarded for its training and employment project for students from Morocco

The Spanish shipping company Baleària has seen its project 'Professional training in the field of maritime transport', especially aimed at Moroccan students, win the award for best practice in labour inclusion at the 6th edition of the Diversity and Inclusion Awards, which are presented annually by the Adecco Foundation and the Excellence in Sustainability Club.

The project of the company chaired by Adolfo Utor is aimed at vocational training students in Morocco and has the collaboration of several Spanish organisations and the Moroccan government, in a public-private alliance that was launched in 2018.

Specifically, Baleària collaborates with the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Tourism and Transport, and the Office of Vocational Training and Promotion of Labour (OFPPT) of Morocco.

Baleària, patrono de Conexus, galardonada en la sexta edición de los Premios DE&I#balearia #inclusion #patronosconexushttps://t.co/1RXMhBi0Lr

— Fundación Conexus (@FConexus) July 14, 2023

Through this plan, the Spanish shipping company seeks the employability and job placement of students from Tangier, Rabat, Casablanca, Fez and other Moroccan cities in a series of trades linked to maritime passenger transport services.

So far, five editions have been carried out, with a total of 100 students, who have been able to acquire the knowledge and skills required by shipping companies to join their staff, in a practical way and focused on the real needs of the labour market in this sector.

This training project has improved the employment prospects of these young people at risk of exclusion, who have had the opportunity to learn about issues such as the maritime safety code, reception, passenger service and kitchen work.

As part of the programme, the students have done a month's work experience on board one of Baleària's ships, on some of the routes the company operates.

Baleària and Morocco

The Spanish shipping company is especially linked to Morocco, a country in which it has been present since 2003 on several routes from ports in southern Spain and France to the Moroccan ports of Tangier Med and Nador.

As part of its social commitment to Morocco, Baleària is committed to ensuring that these routes have local staff both on the ground operations and in the fleet.

In addition, the company is committed to the socio-economic development of the territories where it operates and has contributed to the achievement of the sustainable development goals proposed by the United Nations both in the creation of employment (goal 8) and in the reduction of inequalities (goal 10) and alliances to achieve the goals (goal 17).

This is in addition to the various social and humanitarian programmes that the shipping company has been running for years in the north of Morocco.

The prize awarded by the Adecco Foundation and the Excellence in Sustainability Club was collected by the president of Baleária, Adolfo Utor, from Francisco Mesonero, general director of the ADECCO Foundation, during a ceremony held at the Círculo de Bellas Artes.