Says DOLE chief
Filipino seafarers are assured of continued good standing in the global maritime community, as the Philippines maintained its standing in the White List of the International Maritime Organization, the Department of Labor and Employment said.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the Philippines has taken corrective actions recommended by the European Commission’s Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA).
“The Philippines remains firmly solid on the IMO’s ‘white list’ in 2011, which reflects its consistent and sustained efforts in giving full and complete effect to the IMO’s revised Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping Convention (STCW ’95) as amended,” Baldoz said.
According to the DOLE, the country has consistently sustained and maintained its inclusion in the “White List” in 2000, 2005, and 2009.
Baldoz said the submission of updates on the corrective actions taken in response to the EMSA audit recommendations “demonstrate our firm commitment to improve our higher maritime education, training, and certification systems.”
Meanwhile, the DOLE said the Philippine Maritime Training Council (MTC) and the Seamen’s Employment Center of Japan (SECOJ) signed a memorandum of agreement to implement the MTC’s 2012 Maritime Instructors’ Training Program.
SECOJ is an authorized judicial foundation of the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
The DOLE said the MOA was signed last week at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Manila between SECOJ general manager Yasuhiko Semba and MTC Director Liberty Casco.
Witnesses included Capt. Toshi Seki of the SECOJ and MTC staff.
Baldoz said the agreement is just one of the many examples of bilateral cooperation between the Japanese and Philippine government that could result to a steady supply of qualified and competent Filipino seafarers not only for Japanese ships, but also to the whole maritime industry.
“We have seen the assistance of our Japanese partners in various forms such as the establishment of training centers, provision of cadetship slots, and grant of training equipment, among others, to the Philippine maritime education and training sector,” she said.
MTC’s Casco said the MOA aims to improve the teaching skills of Philippine maritime instructors and to provide them with up-to-date technical information related to their specialty. “This kind of HRD initiative will improve their capacity to effectively conduct various training courses, and thus enhance the quality of education and training of our seafarers.”
The program consists of onboard training and a classroom training which shall be held in Japan for two-and-a-half months. All training costs, including air tickets, clothing, training allowance, accommodation, transportation and medical costs shall be borne by SECOJ.
Baldoz noted that similar agreements were signed in 2010 and 2011.
There are 12 Filipino maritime instructors who have undertaken the SECOJ training scheme, two of whom came from the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP). The two had undergone the training from January 7 to March 18, 2011.
A second batch of 10 maritime instructors came from government and private maritime institutions – the National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP), Philippine Merchant Marine Academy (PMMA), Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP), Philippine Association of Maritime Training Centers, Inc. (PAMTCI), and the Philippine Association of Maritime Institutions (PAMI).
The 10 started their training on January 6 and are scheduled to finish it by March.
Source: GMA News
