Liberia Maritime Authority Commissioner and CEO Neto ZarZar Leighe has made breakthrough in outreach with leadership of Shanghai Maritime University to explore stepped-up cooperation in education, training and technology exchange.
The meeting with SMU Chairman Song Baoru, Vice President Yin Ming and other senior managers produced several concrete commitments, Leighe said Wednesday in a statement posted on his Facebook account.
SMU has agreed to offer scholarships to young Liberians in fields including marine engineering, nautical science, port and shipping management, and maritime law.
The university also pledged capacity-building support for staff of LiMA and the Liberia Maritime Training Institute (LMTI) through short courses, workshops and internships.
The two sides further agreed to pursue technology sharing to upgrade training facilities at LMTI and align its programs with international standards. An MoU formalizing the partnership has been drafted and forwarded to SMU, with a proposed signing window of December 3–5, 2025, Leighe said.
“A great day for Liberia’s maritime future!” Leighe wrote, calling the developments “a major step towards empowering the next generation of Liberian maritime professionals” and deepening Liberia–China collaboration under the existing Liberia–China Maritime Agreement.
