YEP MED trained 300 people in its 2nd edition of Digital International Port Logistics course

The second edition of the vocational digital international port logistics trainings of the EU funded project YEP MED (Youth Employment in the Ports of the Mediterranean) took place over the months of February and March 2022 for two groups of port communities. The first group involved trainees from Beirut, Civitavecchia, Tunisia and Barcelona, and took place from February 21st 2022 till March 07th 2022, followed by a second group of trainees that included representatives from Aqaba, Damietta, Marseille, Barcelona and Valencia and took place from 14th till 28th March 2022.

A total of 300 students from the eight port communities took part in these challenging and innovative online courses. The global coordination and organization of the project was carried out by the Escola Europea (Spain), the lead partner of the project, whilst local project partners gave national level support. At the international level, participants could interact with students from other Mediterranean countries and support each other in the export operations they need to design, plan and manage as part of the training. The main objective of these port logistics trainings is to upscale the youth in blue skills and facilitate their access to employment in the Mediterranean transport sector.

This training program provided the students with an opportunity to acquire first-hand practical experiences in port-logistic operations through the use of a newly designed virtual ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) platform to simulate port operations. Students worked together in groups to design and prepare transport operations that freight forwarders regularly carry out by accessing the Port Virtual Lab Platform. The Simulated Practice Enterprise is a methodological didactic strategy of “Learning by Doing” – through a digital lens.

The topics covered by these two consecutive international training programs were namely: freight forwarders and logistics operations, processes, commercial, transport, , contracts and Incoterms, insurance and international payments, intermodal transport, overall port community systems and digital documents, external cost analysis and CO2 emissions. The trainings were implemented with the close collaboration of more trained and experimented teachers from technical and vocational education and training (TVET) centers and professionals of the sector, within an extremely rich and multicultural context.

These trainings will be followed with series of the 2nd edition of occupational trainings courses in early fall. YEP MED foresees helping successful trainees to integrate into local logistics companies through apprenticeships programs that will complete the dual training model.