Mary Madu Hamman is President, Women’s International Shipping & Trading Association) Nigeria chapter, an organisation for women in management positions involved in the maritime transportation business and related trades worldwide. In this interview with Yetunde Oladeinde, she speaks on the challenges confronting women in the maritime sector vis-à-vis opportunities and potentials for growth. Excerpts:
What are some of the challenges for women in the maritime sector?
The reason why we have fewer women in the sector is because many are looking at the challenges. For those who are interested it is important to let them know that it is very profitable. Maritime jobs are being paid for in hard currencies. So, if they are seafarers, they are going to be on board vessels. This means that it would improve our foreign reserves. Here, we are talking about the gender gaps. What we are saying is that women can do all that the men are doing. And then we are all over the departments from administration to legal as well as teachers and instructors. These are all the areas that women can take up. The only reason there is a difference may be because we don’t wear uniforms. You go out and people don’t feel that you are in the sector. But we are all over and we are making impact. Since the competition is so tight, anywhere you find a woman, she always wants to prove herself because the maritime industry is not for a weakling.
In view of the challenges, harassment at work do you see the women competing favourably with their male counterparts?
They have to be strong because if you know your job nobody can stand in your way. Besides, there are things in place now like cameras that can take care of things like harassment. Except you are interested, the culprit won’t get away. It can be picked on the camera and you can report it. If anybody is caught harassing another person, they will definitely punish the person. It is all left to you. So, what we have been telling them is to come out, tell your story and don’t be afraid. If it is on camera, you can verify it.
The issue of poor remuneration is another challenge. What has been done in this regard?
You know they have trade unions and it all depends on where they are working and what is obtainable. There is a standard for payment for seafarers wherever they are and there are lots of opportunities for them. You don’t just take anything because you are looking for a job. As long as you are good in your field, you would get the right job. If you have any complaints, it is better to channel it in the right direction. There are instruments in place that would guide all these problems.
How can the barriers be removed for women in the sector?
If you remove the barriers, then you are making them to be men. As women, that factor would still come up. We are women but with awareness and determination, they can excel. At WISTA, we tell them about the opportunities, groom and mentor them. Some of us are about to exit, by the end of next year, I would be retiring and then all my experiences in the industry can be used in mentoring the young ones. I have been in Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) for the past 26 years and I know what I saw. For instance, they would say that you are a woman; they cannot make you a Port Manager. So, why can’t I be in the port because, I am doing what you are doing? As a Head, you have people that you are working with, they do the runs and you are just supervising them. Or they can say as a woman, you can’t go to the port at night. I go to the port at night and there is nothing that they can do that we cannot do. So, the woman is left out in the process, promotion and other responsibilities. But you have to fight for it. And if they try you once or twice and see that you can do it very well, then you will keep getting things to do. But if you keep telling them that you are a woman, I can’t do it or that this is for men, then they will continue to push you aside.
Even when I came into the industry and I needed a job, the response was that we don’t employ women here. I told them I could see some women passing by, they said just a few. Then I said I would be one of them. I had to push and I think I was following my paper for over three months. Some of the security men then thought I worked there already. At a point, they said please don’t come again, we will call you when it is ready. Then to learn the job was another phase, they would give you the one that is the hardest, so that you will fail. But they didn’t know that by giving you those types of jobs, you are learning. You have to know the manifest, summarise the size of the container, the area the container is coming from and the type of cargo. As well as how to calculate the tonnage and all that. It became another school, after graduating for some time before I joined NIMASA. I had to start learning like ABC. It was also important to listen to people and learn as I do those things. There is no job that you see as too small or too big. This job is for the clerks. The clerks know it better. They have been there and so it is to come down and learn if want to survive.
What kept you going?
What kept me going was the zeal to achieve, to be at the top of the game as well. And then the pay is not bad compared to where I was coming from. I was coming from a typical Ministry and then when I joined NIMASA the salary wasn’t much different. But with time things were changing and there were opportunities. The places that I couldn’t go before now, I can go to so many places. What kept me going was the fact that I can travel around the world on the job. It is something that you want to do over and over again.
What are some of the memorable places that you have been to?
I have been to New Orleans and it was around the tsunami time. We have also been to Singapore and we saw the development there. Then you see that some of these countries are small and they are doing very well. So, you wonder why we can do the same thing too. We have also been to Macao, a small Island. We went on a cruise for ten days from US to Bahamas. It was a very beautiful experience being on a new vessel that was just launched. WISTA actually did our conference on board the vessel and it was a different experience.
What are some of the things your organisation is doing to empower the young ones?
At WISTA, we have been mentoring, encouraging the young ones, we have also been paying school fees as well as taking them to places that they have never been to. Early this year in April we went to Ghana for the regional conference and we went along with some ladies and paid for their flight tickets, so that they could go and have the experience. Most of them have never travelled before and those are part of the things that WISTA does. We have taken our girls to Maritime Academy in Ghana and Oron, Akwa Ibom State. We have also given prizes to the best female Cadet. Now, most of them work very hard, try to excel to get our prizes. And we also encourage those that have graduated in different ways. We talk to some of the shipping companies to help them on board their vessels. Placement is usually their problem and we have contacts. The essence of WISTA is networking with people in the industry as well as asking them for favour where necessary.
A few women have vessels in Nigeria. How would you describe their efforts?
I talk with most of them and they always cry out that things are not moving fine for them. We have Margaret Orakwusi, Chizob who operates within the oil and gas industry. If you hear their stories, you would be moved. They are tough women. I don’t know how they do it but they get results.
We also reach out to the women in the riverine areas. Now, we have just bought a vessel, a fishing boat with engine and net. We are going to give the women in Aguleri to encourage them. We would be going to Aguleri in before the end of July to present to the community. So, those are the things that we have been doing. We have also done it in Oron and Epe and the women have been coming with feedbacks that they are progressing. Some thought that they are supposed to pay us back from the proceeds of the fishing boats that we have given them. But we usually tell them that it is for them to groom themselves. So, they have been sharing the profits interchangeably with the different groups. The women of Oron even built a cold room so that when they go out to fish, they have a place to keep the leftovers. So, we have been encouraging them in the best way we can. We are also organising meetings and we have our annual conferences that we do and we encourage them to come and learn from the lectures. We discuss topical issues and we have discussed the Apapa gridlock and a number of relevant issues in the industry. Most times, we use women as resource persons and some professional men too. The women also have it; there is nothing that the men can do that we cannot do.
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