The Coast Guard has 16 newly graduated “Able Seamen” with St. Eustatius receiving their first programme graduate. The achievement came as 16 recruits from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten including participants from Saba and St. Eustatius, completed more than a year of intensive training and professional development under the 2025 JBK programme.
PHILIPSBURG--St. Eustatius has its first graduate of the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard’s Junior Coast Guard Crew Member Programme JBK, with the historic graduate being a woman. The achievement came as 16 recruits from Aruba, Curaçao and St. Maarten including participants from Saba and St. Eustatius, completed more than a year of intensive training and professional development under the 2025 JBK programme.
The first graduate from St. Eustatius marks a milestone for both the island and the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard said it is the first time someone from St. Eustatius has successfully completed the programme, with the graduate’s achievement also making her the first woman from the island to do so. The top-performing graduate of this year’s class was another young woman from Aruba.
The JBK programme prepares recruits for the range of duties they can expect to perform as Coast Guard crew members. Training included maritime operations and boarding procedures, as well as first aid, firearms training, physical and mental development, and law enforcement. The recruits also received law enforcement training through the law enforcement and security training institute “Opleidingsinstituut Rechtshandhaving en Veiligheidszorg” (ORV), covering areas including criminal law, criminal procedure, report writing, arrest procedures and self-defence.
Practical training was carried out across several islands and aboard Coast Guard cutter vessels, giving recruits experience in different operational environments. The training also began with the Stronger Together programme, which focused on building the values of teamwork, personal development and resilience that were carried throughout the training.
Following their graduation, the 16 recruits will be promoted to the rank of Able Seaman within the Coast Guard. They will now begin their careers in the service, applying the skills gained during their training to maritime law enforcement and the protection of communities along the Caribbean coast and at sea.
The Coast Guard credited the JBK instructional staff and participating departments and units for their contribution to the programme. It also thanked Naval Base Suffisant for housing the recruits during their training. Particular recognition was given to the ORV, with the Coast Guard noting that its partnership with the institute has continued to strengthen in recent years.
The graduates will receive a jointly recognised JBK diploma from the Coast Guard and ORV, highlighting the cooperation between the two organisations in preparing new Coast Guard personnel.
