MANILA, Philippines—Senator Joel Villanueva is pushing for the reopening of airports and seaports to assist in the faster crew changes of Filipino seafarers and avert a potential two-year deployment drought. Kailangan po ng mga barko na magsagawa ng crew change para masigurong patuloy ang kanilang operasyon ng maayos at makapag-pahinga ang ating mga seafarer,” said Villanueva in a statement. Villanueva said that Filipino seafarers make up over 25 percent of the over 1.5 million seafarers worldwide that enables some 90 percent of the global trade via sea. “Our seafarers play a vital role in both the national and global economy, contributing close to $7 billion in inward annual remittances to the country,” said Villanueva. “In 2017, Filipino seafarers contributed $5.87 billion in remittances, up by 21.4 percent from $4.84 billion in 2012.”/MUFADVERTISEMENTRead NextEDITORS' PICKMOST READ

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer August 22, 2020 11:37 UTC