TESDA to train seafarers

MANILA, Philippines -  Amid threats of a hiring ban, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) is adopting a comprehensive program to train more Filipino seafarers to be qualified for employment abroad.

TESDA director general Joel Villanueva said the government is now working on a training and assessment program to upgrade the skills of Filipino seamen.

“We want to enhance our training and assessment program to make our seafarers more equipped and skilled as they set sail all over the globe,” Villanueva said.

Despite the growing demand for seamen worldwide, Villanueva said a limited number of Filipino seafarers are getting deployed due to lack of qualified marine officers.

He said the shortage of marine officers is due to lack of opportunity for training and upgrading of their existing qualifications.

Thus, he said, TESDA invited a few months ago the major players of the maritime industry in a consultation meeting to be able to know the concerns over the quality of Filipino seafarers at this time.

Earlier, the government reported that the European Commission’s Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) has found deficiencies in the country’s maritime training education and certification system that could lead to a ban in deployment of Filipino seafarers in European Union-flagged vessels.

But the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said concerned government agencies are already exerting efforts to address the reported deficiencies before the August deadline set by EMSA.

According to Villanueva, TESDA has created a technical working group to work on the possible creation of a single pool of assessors and trainers to offer seafarers a one-stop shop where they can train, re-train or upgrade their skills, and then later undergo assessment and certification to raise their value in the job market.

The group will also review the training regulations in watchkeeping deck, watchkeeping engine, AB deck, AB engine, and electro technical rating to ensure it complies with the international yardstick set under the standards of training, certification and watchkeeping for seafarers.

“TESDA will work with the Commission on Higher Education on a seamless maritime education and training program where the ratings course is articulated to the officers program that will most certainly address this burning issue of shortage of workers and provide our experienced seamen the opportunity for career advancement,” Villanueva said.    

He said coordination among concerned agencies will also improve the curriculum and offer new technologies and methodologies in maritime education and training.