Port of Baku starts training program with Netherlands

"Baku International Sea Trade Port" CJSC and the Netherlands Fontys University of Applied Sciences, Guilde Institute, and Cabooter Group, a leading logistics company in the region, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, Baku Port told Report.

According to the memorandum, employees of the Port of Baku, representatives of the companies in the field of logistics in Azerbaijan, as well as other candidates who want to work in the field of transport, trade, and logistics, will be enrolled in a 4-month training program in the Netherlands. Program participants will gain theoretical and practical knowledge in international logistics and global port industry, warehouse management, port operations, and customs procedures at Fontys University of Applied Sciences and Guilde Institute's Vocational Training Center.

Director-General of the Port of Baku Taleh Ziyadov noted that launching the training on the logistics and port-related subjects in Venlo, which has an important place on the world logistics map, is done in the timely manner:

"Logistics has always been an area where new technologies and modern management methods are applied. In particular, the Limburg region, one of the most important logistic hubs in Europe, where the city of Venlo is located. As I have mentioned, the Fontys University and Guilde Institute are the centers of knowledge in the area. The knowledge gained here covers the wide spectrum of the transport area and will play an important role in forming modern personnel in logistics in our country."

The first training is planned to be held in September-December 2021. Participants in the training program will receive theoretical knowledge for 3 hours a day at Fontys University and Guilde Institute, and in the afternoon will be involved in real work in the warehouses, management offices, and unloading areas of the Cabooter Group.

CEO of the Cabooter Group, Hans Cabooter, noted that Azerbaijan and the Port of Baku are located at a strategic transport hub. Since 2019 the port and its company have been working together to expand freight traffic from Europe to Central Asia and China. Mr. Cabooter stressed that the training program would increase the professional knowledge of the Port of Baku employees and other participants and will meet operational and modern requirements to handle increasing cargo flow:

"The Port of Baku is one of the most modern ports, and most of its employees are representatives of the young generation. The 4-month training program, which we support, will shape the training of port staff and the professional staff of other companies under the requirements of the time amid the rapid changes that we observe in our field."

At the end of the event, the Director-General of the Port of Baku Taleh Ziyadov, Fontys University's Director Henning Jensen, Guilde Institute's Head of Board Peter Thuis, and the Board Member of the Cabooter Group, Peter Pardoel, signed a Memorandum of Understanding. The Port of Baku, the Limburg region's leading logistics companies, including Cabooter Group and the University of Fontys, agreed to cooperate in April 2019.

Located on the border with Germany, the city of Venlo is home to distributors and dealerships of the world's largest companies, covering a wide range of agribusiness, new parks, well-known clothing brands, electronics, and other areas. Cargo, mainly from major ports such as Rotterdam, Antwerp, and Amsterdam, is distributed to most European countries from Venlo.