Stepping away from the comfort of a guaranteed salary in favour of diving into the intrepid waters of entrepreneurship is always a challenge, but Samantha Montes has announced her intentions to the maritime industry and is looking forward to navigating a new course. She spoke to editor, Colleen Jacka, about her decision and thoughts for providing niche solutions to the industry.

SOUTH AFRICA: Recent engagements between the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) and the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) in Cape Town were aimed at deepening maritime cooperation between the two countries.

Projects in South Africa and Namibia are amongst the 85 successful proposals from around the world to benefit from R40 million worth of funding through the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)’s Ocean Stewardship Fund (OSF).

SEYCHELLES: The commitment to establish a Port Control Unit (PCU) at the port by next month was approved during the latest cabinet meeting.

LIBYA: The current bidding round for upstream licensing has already attracted more than 40 applicants and is due to be concluded by November this year.

NIGER: With ambitions to become a major actor in Africa's sustainable fisheries transformation by aligning its national strategies to continental objectives, Niger has concluded a three-day workshop to address its plans with the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa (PFRS).

SOUTH AFRICA: The Portfolio Committee on Mineral and Petroleum Resources has resolved to conduct an urgent oversight visit to Alexkor following a sitting this week that included a briefing from the Equitable Access Campaign (EAC) highlighting allegations of maladministration and corruption in the State Owned Enterprise (SOE).

MOROCCO: Speaking at the opening of the high-level preparatory workshop for the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC-3) recently, Morocco’s Secretary of State for Maritime Fisheries, Zakia Driouich, stressed the need for a strong, coordinated African voice at the discussions scheduled for June.