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The chief executive officer of Kish Shipping Line, Captain Reza Aghaee, sat down in an interview with MANA correspondent reported, and filled us in on the history of this line, saying that it was established in 2009 in the pursuit of maritime human resources management. However, once the IRISL was transformed into a holding, Kish Shipping Line Manning Company turned into an independent company, and its main mission was set to be recruiting and training seafarers (officers and sailors) and taking care of all their issues up to their retirement.

He asserted that decreasing the number of foreign seafarers in the fleet of IRISL and substituting with Iranian seafarers is one of the most vital goals of Kish Shipping Line, and continued that in the past few years, we had made noticeable progress in this pursuit; yet there is still way to go until desirable results are reached. Captain Aghaee added that IRISL was established 50 years ago with purchasing two ships only, and all the crew on its board were foreigners. After 1969, however, IRISL began to gradually admit sailing students and employ seafarers, in such way that after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, with an increase in the number of ships and the enhancement in the quality of sailors’ education, more and more seafarers were recruited. It must also be added that before the Islamic Revolution, the students were sent to the Maritime Training Centers abroad. According to Aghaee, at the point when Kish Shipping Line Manning was established in 2009, 80 % of the crew in IRISL fleet were Iranian and 20 were foreigners. Now, however, Iranians’ share has reached 90 % and mere 10 % of the crew comes from overseas.

According to Captain Aghaee, the Kish Shipping Line embarks and disembarks over 12,000 people to the IRISL fleet; and to be able to do so, it manages 3,400 Iranian seafarers. Moreover, it has to take of a variety of services related to this 3400-person figure including the assignment of seafarers to ships, training, insurance, bank loans and welfare privileges for the seafarers and their families. In the next part of the interview, Aghaee pointed out to the difficult conditions of IRISL in the sanctions era, and the termination of admitting students and training sailor officers.

Luckily, after the execution of JCPOA and the lifting of the sanctions, Aghaee continued, the training of sailor officers restarted in 2015 with a new planning. The officer students will go through their basic training in Imam Khomeini Naval University of Noshahr, where they will learn basic lessons and professional discipline. Then, they are sent to IRISL training center in Boushehr for training on advanced and specialized maritime courses. Ever since 2015, 250 students have been admitted to be trained. Aghaee stressed that the Kish Shipping Line Manning Co. does not suffice to the admission and training of new sailor officers only, but rather, it enjoys the knowledge and expertise of the officers who are qualified based on the international standards and have the capacity of operating on IRISL ships. Aghaee also explained that IRISL does not merely supply its human resources from IRISL Maritime Training Institute, but it uses the work force available in the market, as well. In the light of this policy, a large number of electronic expert officers, deck officers and engine engineers have been hired so far. According to Aghaee, the least number of problems belong to the training of seafarers, since the entire training occurs in a very short term (a maximum of 4 months). Kish Shipping Line, he continued, endeavors to bring up better seafarers for IRISL fleet by relying on promotion of systems, putting in place better management and control. This will reassure better seafarers and hence the better, faster, more accurate and more standard delivery of cargoes.

The training of the seafarers has to be consistent with the principles and standards set by international conventions such as STCW 2010 Convention, Captain Aghaee stated. He also remarked that not only has Kish Shipping Line measured up to these training standards, but it has also gone beyond them and held additional and complementary programs for seafarers. In the light of the controls and supervision extended on maritime education and issuing maritime certificates by the Ports and Maritime Organization as the main ruling maritime authority, Iranian seafarers have come to be known as the most reputed seamen in the world, in such way that currently, many Iranian seafarers are hired in various maritime areas– namely maritime industries, ship management, ship building and even off-shore areas. Referring to IRISL Maritime Training Institute’s membership in world’s Maritime Universities Association, Captain Aghaee asserted that this institute is the only Iranian institute which participates in the annual meetings of this global association and gets updated on the most recent developments in training methods, educational approaches and maritime-related issues and affairs. If some problems that are beyond the authority of Kish Shipping Line are solved, Iran can export seafarers to the world. An example of such problems is issues in Iranian seafarers’ joining the ships in overseas ports. Seafarers’ export will be noticeably facilitated provided Iranian seafarers have their passports and Iranian qualification documents with themselves, and manage to join other ships with no formalities overseas.

Discussing the impact of maritime transportation recession on maritime work force, Captain Aghaee expressed that a recession in maritime transportation exerts the majority of its impacts on maritime trade and maritime earnings; yet, even when ships have little activities or they are at the port waiting for the venture order, they still need seafarers. Therefore, the decrease in the number of the ships as well the decrease in the maritime transportation dose not have any impact on seafarers’ salary and perks. It dose not lead to downsizing or staff cuts either. Referring to the severe shortage of seafarers worldwide, Captain Aghaee stated that most transportation companies do not spend money and time to train seafarers, and instead, choose to recruit the seafarers who are already available. Therefore, whenever the world is facing a shortage of seafarers, the hiring of seafarers will be competitive and seafarers’ salaries and perk rise. Moreover, the International Transportation Federation (ITF) supervises the minimum salaries paid to seafarers, and the MLC 2006 Convention, ratified by this federation, lays out standards for seafarers’ life at sea.

Owing to its international nature, IRISL is committed to these international principles, keeps up to the highest standards, and observes the minimum payment levels for all seafarers, regardless of their nationality. Using as many Iranian seafarers as possible on the fleets of IRISL is a crucial goal for Kish Shipping Line, along with exporting seafarers and assisting maritime training centers, he concluded. At the moment, Aghaee carried on, India, European countries and the Philippines are among the countries that play a colorful role in the global seafarer export market and hoped that someday in the near future, Iran can achieve its position in this market, as well.