TIM
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TIMeMagazine
eMagazineVol.1
Vol.1Issue
Issue 5
Over 5,000 certificates issued
by Tacloban maritime training
centre
By: Philip Ortaleza
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619 certificates to seafarer-trainees during the first
semester of 2016 were issued by the government-run
National Maritime Polytechnic (NMP) based in Tacloban City, Leyte.
NMP is a leading maritime institute which trains
and hones aspiring and active seafarers, maritime
instructors and assessors from the different regions of
the country, but mainly from Eastern Visayas. NMP continues to offer
Deck Courses, Engine Courses, Specialized Courses, Basic Courses
and Professional Development Courses.
NMP OIC and Executive Director Manuel C. Roldan noted that
4,351 or 77 of the certificates were for safety courses, with Proficiency in Survival Craft and Rescue Boat, Basic Training, Gender Sensitivity Training for Seafarers, Ship Security Awareness Training and
Seafarers with Designated Security Duties and BT Updating Training
for Personal Safety and Social Responsibility having the highest
turnout.
NMP takes pride in its state-of-the-art training equipment that
ensure the quality of its maritime programs. “These efforts result in
valuable contributions in producing highly competitive seafarers,”
Roldan stressed.
Not to be outdone, women trainees are welcome at the NMP and
can look forward to a rewarding career in the maritime industry, of
which Roldan added with pride that the institute’s officer-in-charge
of Engineering Watch Engineer, Engineer Annaliza A. Cajeme, is
among those who trained at the facility; she enrolled upon the
urging of a friend, remembering how “I felt encouraged to take up
marine engineering so I could travel without spending too much
money. At the same time, the salary is significantly higher compared
to Philippine land-based jobs.”
Cajeme, who is also an engine department trainer at NMP, talked
about the challenges of being the only woman seafarer on a ship.
She said she plans to apply for the next higher license and rank.
“I have plans of going on board to gain more experience and
qualify for the next license. In this profession, the more you get on
board, the more experience you gain and these are significant learnings that I can share with the trainees at NMP”, she added.
Roldan said Cajeme breaks the perception that seafaring is a
male-dominated field. “She is actually an eye-opener that seafaring
is also for women…After all, we are pursuing gender equality in this
profession,” he summed up.
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