Philippines, Indonesia, and Myanmar lead seafarer sources in Southeast Asia

Among the countries with the highest number of sailors in Asia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Myanmar from Southeast Asia are included, said Captain Soe Min Aung, president of the Myanmar Seafarers Federation (MSF).
“In the past, people from Japan, Korea, Singapore, Chinese Taipei, China, and Malaysia used to go on ships. However, over the past two decades, there have been fewer people on ships from these countries. Myanmar is one of the countries where more people come on board ships with low wages. If you look at Asia, the Filipinos are the top, followed by Indonesians and Myanmar,” he said.
It is necessary to improve the skills of the seafarers in order to get more Myanmar nationals to work as sailors, he said.
“They work on ships to get wages. It is to exchange labour for money. If you look around the world, the employer will hire those with cheaper wages. In the last two decades, Chinese and Vietnamese have also worked on ships. However, when their wages are high because of their better economies, the employer doesn’t want to hire them. When they don’t want to hire, there are vacancies. To fill these gaps, you must have a decent quality and be able to compete with others. As for the salary, if it is cheaper compared to others, the employer will hire, “ he explained.
Currently, the MSF has launched free basic English courses at the worksite and free practical deck training for sailors who will serve on cruise ships. — MT/ZN/ED