By SHIANEE MAMANGLU
December 8, 2009,
The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said dollar remittances from the seafarers grew by an average of 4.51 percent or $108 million from January to September, thus increasing it to $2.501 billion from $2.393 billion for the same period last year.
“The nonstop rise in remittances from sea-based migrant Filipino workers to increased enlistment by shipowners in Europe and Asia have contributed to high remittances,’’ said Ernesto Herrera, TUCP secretary general.
"A growing number of European and Asian shipping firms are disbanding their multinational crews, and replacing them wholesale with all-Filipino personnel that are younger and more able," he added.
Herrera noted that the surge in remittances is also attributed to foreign employers' preference for Filipino sailors.
“Foreign employers find Filipino sailors quick learners, and easier to train compared to other nationals. This may be due to their superior instruction here, apart from their ability to understand English," he said.
According to TUCP, remittances from Filipino sailors based in Norway soared by 110 percent to $229.551 million from $109.079 million over the same nine-month period in 2008.
Remittances from Filipino sailors based in Japan were also up 57 percent to $222.505 million from $141.886 million, it said.
The other fast-growing sources of remittances from Filipino sailors were the United Kingdom, up 122 percent to $192.373; Germany, up 47 percent to $175.067 million; Singapore, up 60 percent to $107.945 million; Greece, up 67 percent to $93.446 million; Cyprus, up 23 percent to $46.390 million; The Netherlands, up 114 percent to $41.281 million; Denmark, up 182 percent to $28.864 million; Oman, up 24 percent to $24.948 million; Hong Kong, up 33 percent to $24.870 million; and Sweden, up 126 percent to $24.223 million.
"The double to triple-digit increases more than offset the 24 percent drop in remittances from Filipino sailors based in the U.S., to $1.216 billion from $1.595 billion,'' TUCP said.
It added: "The cash sent home by sailors accounted for 20 percent of the aggregate remittances from all migrant Filipino workers in the nine-month period.''
Citing data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, TUCP said that Migrant Filipino workers wired home a total of $12.789 billion in the first nine months, up by $516.62 million or 4.21 percent from the $12.273 billion they remitted in the same period in 2008.
Meanwhile, the group reiterated its call for the International Maritime Organization and shipowners to aggressively repel piracy and protect sailors.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) earlier reported that at least 71 Filipino sailors are still being held by pirates off Somalia.
Data from the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) showed that some 229,000 Filipino sailors are on board merchant shipping vessels around the world at any given time.
Source: Manila Bulletin, December 8, 2009