Opinion: STCW Convention Fit for Purpose, But Its Format Is Holding the Industry Back

The Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) convention continues to serve as the cornerstone of global seafarer competency regulation, but its presentation and accessibility are increasingly misaligned with the needs of a modern maritime workforce — at least according to one prominent industry voice. Matt Gilbert, founder and CEO of maritime technology firm Yuni, has argued in a commentary published by Splash247 that the convention's underlying framework remains sound, but its format is failing the wide range of professionals who rely on it daily. Gilbert highlights a fundamental disconnect in how STCW information is consumed across the industry. A vetting analyst reviewing a seafarer's CV, a designated person ashore conducting a training needs analysis, a flag state inspector referencing a printed copy of the convention, and a workforce strategist poring over the latest five-year workforce report from BIMCO — all are working from the same regulatory foundation, yet each is navigating it through a different, often cumbersome lens. The argument is a pointed one for an industry that has invested heavily in digital transformation across vessel operations, port logistics, and supply chain management, yet has been slower to modernise how its foundational regulatory documents are structured and accessed. Gilbert's proposed framing — rendering STCW 'as a graph' — suggests a shift toward interconnected, machine-readable or visually navigable representations of the convention's requirements, rather than the static, linear document format that has defined it for decades. Such an approach could, in theory, allow competency frameworks to be queried, cross-referenced, and integrated directly into crew management systems and training platforms. The commentary arrives at a time when the maritime industry is grappling with persistent seafarer shortages, evolving competency requirements driven by decarbonisation technologies, and growing pressure on flag states and port state control authorities to streamline compliance processes. For crewing managers and maritime HR professionals, the inefficiency Gilbert describes is a familiar operational reality. Translating STCW requirements into practical training matrices, recruitment criteria, and audit checklists remains a largely manual and time-intensive process — one that technology has only partially addressed. While the piece represents one industry perspective rather than a regulatory proposal, it contributes to a broader conversation about whether international maritime conventions, many of which predate the digital era in their current form, are due for a structural rethink — not in their intent, but in their architecture. *Source: Splash247*