Naima Ahmed, Engine Cadet – Kenya

My job responsibilities involve actively participating in the maintenance of machinery, onboarding the vessel, watchkeeping duties, filling logbooks, drills and bunkering operations under supervision of the engineer on duty.

What I love most about my profession is learning new things since everyday at sea is different and gives you a new opportunity to engage in, I also love night watchkeeping duties because of the calmness and silence of the sea.

Honestly gender has not been an issue on the vessel that I work on yet even though we were the first set of women onboard. My most challenging experience was seasickness but with time you get used at being in the sea.

I’d love to see more women given opportunities onboard to break the notion that seafaring jobs are for men. My advice to female seafarers is, as long as you are determined to be an experienced worker in any department either deck or engine you can be one, it all begins in your brain. Visualize it and you will be it .

Naima Ahmed, Engine Cadet – Kenya