MCA Chief Examiner Ajit Jacob speaking at Flag Forum 2025
Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) Chief Medical Adviser Dr Sue Stannard and Chief Examiner Ajit Jacob will be taking part in a panel discussion at an international seafarer training and wellbeing conference in the Philippines.
Often seen as one of the maritime industry’s leading international conferences, Seatrade Maritime Crew Connect Global 2026 focuses on crewing, recruitment, training and seafarer welfare, bringing together shipowners, crew managers, regulators and maritime technology suppliers from across the globe.
The conference will take place from 20-22 October at Shangri-La The Fort in Manila, Philippines, and is expected to welcome more than 750 maritime professionals across 40 conference sessions.
This year’s conference focuses on recruitment and retention of seafarers, as well as crew wellbeing, digital transformation and regulatory compliance. Training and skills, workforce development and modern technologies on board ships impacting crew also feature on the agenda.
Ajit Jacob, Chief Examiner and Deputy Director for Seafarer Standards and Ship Registration at the MCA said:
“The UK is at the forefront of seafarer training, and I look forward to discussing how training frameworks can evolve to keep pace with technological advances on board ships.
“As we modernise seafarer training, we must ensure that innovation enhances safety while preserving the core principles of seamanship that remains fundamental to the seafaring profession.”
Ajit will be speaking as part of a panel discussion,Technostress, Cognitive Load & the Simulator Model: Training Seafarers for Ships That Don’t Exist Yet. The conference is chaired by Andreas Nordseth, who has previously led the Danish Maritime Authority and chaired the European Maritime Safety Agency.
MCA Chief Medical Adviser Dr Sue Stannard will also be presenting at the conference, where, as International Maritime Health Association (IMHA) President, she will provide an overview of the association and take part in the panel discussion, From Reactive to Proactive – Is the Industry Ready to Make Wellbeing a Mandatory Competency?
Sue said:
“It's crucial that as an industry we continue to learn more about crew health and welfare programmes, the impact they are having on seafarers, and how we can do more to encourage people to seek support, maintain a healthy lifestyle and disclose mental health concerns."
“I’m very much looking forward to presenting on the work of IMHA at Crew Connect. IMHA is dedicated to improving the health of seafarers and fishers across the world through health and wellbeing, medical standards and research.
“We are currently leading a review of the International Labour Organisation and International Maritime Organisation Guidelines on the Medical Examination of seafarers on which the UK’s statutory medical standards are based.
“Events like this provide a valuable opportunity to engage directly with the people and organisations we support.”
Seatrade Maritime Crew Connect Global 2026 takes place 20-22 October at Shangri-La The Fort in Manila.
https://insidemca.blog.gov.uk/2026/10/09/training-and-wellbeing-top-the-agenda-for-mca-delegates/
seen at 14:30, 9 October in Inside MCA.