His grandfather sailed a dhow between Musandam and Abu Dhabi, his father was a coastguard sergeant at Ras al Khaimah and his younger brother is a seaman: there is no doubt Capt Abdulla al Hayyas has seafaring in his blood.

Now he is to take the helm as manager of the new Emirates International Maritime Academy and his aim is to reconnect his country with its nautical heritage.

As an Emirati sailor, Capt al Hayyas ranks as something of a rarity these days, with few of his fellow countrymen looking to the high seas for a career.
He hopes the impending launch of the maritime academy will help change this.

“The UAE is a coastal state. Seafaring is nothing new to the country, but now people go to oil and gas and the police. We want to bring them back.”

He admits that much of the romance has been lost from seafaring over the decades. In today’s hi-tech world of quick turnarounds, time ashore is virtually non-existent.

“Things have changed,” says Capt al Hayyas, who during his 13 years at sea has served on a series of oil tankers for Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) and British Petroleum.
“Before, ships spent a long time in port and the sailors enjoyed themselves. Discharging the cargo took time. Now you only spend hours in port and you stay on board. You don’t get the chance to leave the ship and most ports are in industrial areas.”

Instead, the internet and satellite TV are now usually available on board, wages are generous and shipping companies give long periods off work to compensate for time way from home.
“Before it was six months at sea, now it’s two to three months and then you get two months off,” he says. And employment conditions are likely to improve because there is a worldwide dearth of maritime officers. Capt al Hayyas believes the shortage will total 30,000 over the next decade.

The maritime academy will be part of the Dubai Maritime City Campus, which Capt al Hayyas will also manage, and which will include branch campuses of up to half a dozen overseas marine training institutions.
The campus will be within Dubai Maritime City, an ambitious industrial, office, residential and marina development on reclaimed land that is described as the world’s first purpose-built maritime centre.

The scheme, partly completed, is sandwiched between Dubai Drydocks, where huge tankers undergo maintenance, and Port Rashid, a stop-off for cruise ships and now home of the Queen Elizabeth 2, due to be converted into a hotel and based at the Palm Jumeirah.
According to Capt Jaafar bin Sidin, the director of both the academy and campus, the benefits of becoming a seafarer extend beyond a maritime career. Many sailors eventually decide to return to shore and find they are much in demand.

“A ship is like a floating city – what a city needs, you need on board ship. Chief engineers, you find them in hotels. You can get captains in many different industries – some ex-seafarers become airline pilots,” says the 55-year-old Singaporean.
The opportunities for Emiratis and other GCC citizens are great, according Capt bin Sidin.

“The industry is expanding, so in terms of a career it’s something they should be going into now if they want to be holding the key positions in future,” says Capt bin Sidin.

While European and Singaporean ships now employ women, in the Middle East seagoing careers remain the preserve of men, says Capt bin Sidin. But on shore there are just as many opportunities for women.
“A shipping executive can be female, if you’re doing marine insurance you can be female.”

There are a wealth of maritime-related careers on land, in areas such as chartering, brokerage and logistics – jobs most people would not necessarily connect with the sea.

“The moment you mention maritime people think ships, but that’s only one side,” says Capt bin Sidin. “And now it’s up for grabs. There is scope for young people to make a good career from this.”
Among the courses to be offered at the campus will be ones leading to certificates of competency essential for professional licences required in seagoing careers. In addition, there will be non-seafaring academic courses, such as degrees in ship management and naval architecture. There will also be short courses in subjects such as ship safety that an on-board masseuse or singer may need to take. Finally, the campus is expected to offer training in recreational maritime activities such as jet ski operations.
Although several overseas institutions are likely to be based at DMCC, officials insist these will be strictly regulated to prevent duplication of courses.

“A lot of people are approaching us. We could fill the campus easily, but we’re looking at our partners carefully. We will only bring the best of the best,” Capt al Hayyas says.

Having such a specialised centre will reduce the need for shipping companies to send people overseas for training.
“If you want to renew a certificate, at the moment you have to travel to Singapore or Australia or Europe. We’re solving this problem.”

The maritime academy is ultimately funded by the Dubai Government.

“There is a commitment from the Government,” says Capt al Hayyas. “They have given us a piece of land in one of the most expensive developments.”

Courses are likely to start in July at the Port Rashid passenger terminal, which is being converted into a temporary college. The maritime academy is scheduled for completion by late 2011. By the time it reaches full capacity in 2016 it will have about 1,000 students.
Capt al Hayyas was trained under Adnoc sponsorship and at 18 he was sent as a student to Tyneside on England’s north-east coast.

“As soon as I arrived in Britain I spent a week in a sailing boat going to Swansea, Ireland, and the Isle of Man. It was my first time at sea. They were testing me,” he says (source: www.thenational.ae).

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