Singapore and the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO) have renewed their long-standing Developing Countries Training Programme (CDTP) MoU for another three years until 2019. The DCTP seeks to contribute to the development of civil aviation in developing ICAO Member States. Over the next three years Singapore has committed US$2.25 million for 300 fellowships and 10 scholarships.

Administered by ICAO, the DCTP is jointly sponsored by Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS). It provides fellowships and scholarships for participants to attend specialised aviation programmes at the Singapore Aviation Academy (SAA), the training arm of CAAS. The training programmes are designed to help developing States build up their human resources critical to the development of civil aviation.

The recipients of the fellowships can choose from a suite of training programmes conducted at SAA which range from aviation management to aviation safety and security management programmes. The scholarship recipients will attain an SAA Diploma in Civil Aviation Management upon completion.

The Diploma programme provides participants with an appreciation of how the various integral elements in the aviation industry interface with one another and equips graduands with the skills to manage the diverse challenges of a dynamic civil aviation environment.

With the rapid growth of aviation across the globe these efforts have become all the more important both regionally and further afield as well. Over the last 14 years the DCTP has been in place, it has benefited aviation professionals from some 120 countries with over 700 international participants benefitting from the fellowships and scholarships.