DEPLOYMENT of Filipino seafarers overseas suffered a decline last year due to the slowdown in the global shipping industry.
From 406,531 seafarers deployed in 2015, only 304,329 seafarers were sent abroad last year, down by 25 percent, according to the initial records from the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA).
Carl Martin Faannessen, managing director of Abojeb Company, attributed the slowdown to the weaker global shipping activities in the past years.
He noted that the maritime industry had been through “a bit of an earthquake” in the last four to five years that even the largest segments of the world’s fleet have struggled.
“Bulk carriers have been struggling immensely, even giants in the container industry have been reporting losses for the past years. The offshore market, oil and gas, has suffered together with the decline in oil prices,” said Faannessen, adding that the slowdown has put pressure on the people working onboard, with many of them already repatriated to their respective countries.
According to Faannessen, 11 of the 12 biggest shipping companies reported huge losses last year, with many teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Fluctuations are also apparent in all sectors of the maritime market – ship management, finance, crew management and related services.
Abojeb is a maritime and human resource services company, with a pool of over 12,700 seafarers with 10,000 of them on board.
The Philippines is said to be biggest supplier of seafarers in the world. Cebu and Iloilo are the two biggest producers of seafarers in the country. Eighty percent of seabased workers deployed in cruise ships are from Cebu.
Lawyer John Rio Bautista, officer-in-charge at Seabased Pre-employment Services Center at POEA, said the country deploys an average of 150,000 seafarers (non-officers) year-on-year while non-marine workers, such as those deployed on cruise ships, stood at 160,000 annually.
Seafarers send about $4 billion in remittances annually, making them one of the top pillars of the country’s economy.
Faannessen said volatilities in the global maritime industry have a huge impact to the economy, particularly on consumer spending.
But amid these challenges, he said Filipino seafarers remain resilient, optimistic and the most in-demand.
The official said the Philippines is the preferred source market for seafarers because of the good combination of skills and attitude.
“The crisis has given a lot of opportunity for shipowners around the world to focus on the human element onboard. This is one area where Filipinos have the unique ability to shine because of the way they are —welcoming, friendly, engaged, open-minded, and willing to learn,” he said.
The global maritime industry is expected to be more balanced this year, with the exception of the offshore market.
“The offshore market will continue to be more problematic,” said Faannessen, adding that this is due to the continuing downward trend of crude oil prices.
In terms of deployment, the Abojeb official said the demand for non-officers will be stable.
“There is a surplus of ratings (non-officers) until and unless the industry, together with these people find their way to convert them into officers, we will continue to have a surplus. For officers, I think shortages in some areas will remain,” Faannessen said.
Aside from the Philippines, other top supplying countries for seafarers are India, China, Myanmar and Eastern Europe.
