Speaker sends seafarers’ bill to Noy

MANILA, Philippines - Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has sent to President Aquino a bill seeking to designate the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) as the single agency responsible for the enforcement of the 1978 International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watch-keeping for Seafarers and related agreements.

The House of Representatives has approved the bill on third and final reading.

The Senate has already passed the bill, a consolidation of similar measures that House members and senators had introduced.               

 Belmonte said the bill would address the concerns of foreign governments and shipping companies on the accreditation of Filipino seafarers.    

“As a country, the Philippines provides the most number of seafarers in the whole world and their future is endangered because there are changes necessary in their training, accreditation and skills here,” he said.

“That is why the bill is a real contribution to the future of hundreds of thousands of Filipinos who also contribute to our country.” 

Filipino seafarers number more than 300,000.

Romblon Rep. Eleandro Jesus Madrona, one of the bill’s authors, said it would prescribe standards of training and certification to jibe with international conventions and agreements.

“It will enhance the training and skills of our seafarers as global maritime professionals,” he said.

Madrona said European employers had threatened to lay off Filipino seafarers if international standards of training and accreditation were not followed.

“We stood to lose billions of dollars in income earned by our compatriots and which they remit to their families back home,” he said.

The bill would also promote and protect the well-being of seafarers while ensuring their professionalism and competitiveness, Madrona said.