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"We seem to be back to square one," Mr Bautista said. He noted that Philippine maritime authorities prepared the replies more to satisfy the positions of all agencies involved rather than to satisfy the requirements of the IMO.
It was suggested that the Philippines request for a postponement of the April meeting to a date later in the year. This would give enough time for the Philippines to issue the necessary administrative orders or legislation.
The failure of the Philippines to make it to the IMO white list would have serious implications on the world shipping industry and the Philippine economy. The country which has 200,000 seafarers in the international commercial fleet is the single largest supplier of seafarers to the world. Failure of the Philippines to make it to the white list could result in a serious manning shortage.
For the Philippines, not complying with the STCW '95 convention could make most of its seafarers unemployable internationally. For an industry which brings in at least US$3bn annually in foreign exchange, the loss of this income would have serious effects on the economy.
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