Towards a Strategic Management Framework for Enhancing South Africa’s Seafarer Development Programme: Addressing Placement Challenges

The global shortage of qualified seafarers, particularly at the officer level, presents both a challenge and an opportunity for South Africa. Despite the country’s strategic location along critical international trade routes, South African seafarers face significant challenges in obtaining placement upon completion of their training. This article presents a systematic literature review on the placement challenges experienced by seafarers, supplemented with qualitative insights from South African stakeholders. The findings highlight the structural issues within South Africa’s seafarer development programme and propose a strategic management framework to improve the placement and competitiveness of South African seafarers in the global maritime industry.