May 16, 2023
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On Sunday, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reassured that his government would do all it could to address the issues facing their maritime industry after the European Commission agreed to keep recognizing certifications issued by the Philippines.
Acknowledging that the Philippines is one of the world’s foremost providers of maritime labour and that there are about 50,000 Filipino seafarers employed on EU-flagged ships, Marcos welcomed this decision, which will avert potential job losses.
The European Commission informed back in December 2021 that it would withdraw recognition of Philippine-issued credentials unless improvements were made to training and other procedures. They said on Friday they would accept them again due to the efforts made by the Philippines in following requirements.
President Marcos mentioned that this concern over seafarer certificates has been present for 15 years and was a point of discussion between him and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during his visit to Brussels in December.
The Commission has promised technical assistance for furthering education, training and certification for seafarers, including enforcement of minimum education standards and living/working conditions.
Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said on Saturday that they have agreed to satisfy all areas highlighted by the Commission, which surpasses what’s expected of them by international maritime authorities per Marcos’s explicit instruction.
Reference: ET HRWorld, South China Morning Post
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