Local shipping stakeholders are asking the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) to ease the manning regulations for domestic seafarers amid concerns that the lack of qualified seafarers may eventually affect local sea travels.

The concerns were raised during last week’s meeting of shipping stakeholders in Cebu wherein the local crew shortage was reported to have been already resulting in canceled trips and reassignments of ship captains to keep domestic ships sailing.

Lucio Lim, Jr., chairperson of the Philippine Coastwise Shipping Association Inc. (PCSA), said the problem of crew shortage continues to persist among shipping companies.

He said the problem also led to vessels remaining docked due to the lack of qualified domestic seafarers.

On the other hand, industry groups also raised concerns about what they described as misaligned Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) on short-haul, inter-island operations using small ships under 250 gross tonnage.

The result, they said, is the exclusion of hundreds of experienced crew members who lack a formal four-year maritime degree but have served as vessel patrons, captains, and officers for decades.

While some domestic shipping companies said they have manpower, they said they could not just deploy them due to legal issues on qualifications.

As a result, some shipowners have had to fly in captains from Manila or Mindanao just to meet regulatory minimums.

Shipping stakeholders are pushing for a two-track licensing system — one aligned with international STCW standards, and another geared toward domestic qualifications and experience-based certifications.

Lim expressed hope that the national government, through the Department of Transportation and Marina, will come up with the appropriate solutions to the problem in the soonest possible time.