President Ferdinand R Marcos Jr has ordered the creation of the International Advisory Council on Global Maritime Affairs to address deficiencies identified by the EU concerning Filipino seafarers.

This follows the President’s visit to Brussels, Belgium in December, 2022 where he met European industry officials with a view to addressing the deficiencies to prevent job loss among Filipino seafarers deployted to work for European Union flagged vessels.

Marcos issued the directive during a meeting with International Maritime Employers’ Council CEO Francisco Gargiulo, the International Chamber of Shipping, the International Labor Organization and EMSA and several business executives and leaders of European shipping companies and shipowners associations in Brussels last December 13, 2022.