2006: Eleventh National Seafarers' Day

The Eleventh      National Seafarers' Day was celebrated on  September 24, 2006 with the theme "FILIPINO SEAFARERS: OUR PRIDE (Ating Karangalan!) " at the  Quirino Grandstand, Rizal Park, Manila. 

Former president Fidel V. Ramos earlier issued on July 9, 1996 Proclamation No. 828 declaring August 18 as National Seafarers Day wherein  the Apostleship of the Sea (AOS) was tasked to coordinate with the public and private sector in   activities related to the celebration of said event. The purpose of the Proclamation is to give due recognition to the vital role of Filipino seafarers towards the development of the Philippines as a maritime country. Later,  Proclamation No.1094 was issued in 1997 by President Ramos which moved NSD    to every  last Sunday of September every year. 

Per 2006  government data, there were 274, 497   documented seafarers deployed abroad with employment contracts approved by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA)    with dollar remittances reaching US$1.949 billion. Present data showed that there were 367,166 Filipino seafarers deployed in 2013  with dollar remittances of US$5.575 billion in 2014. 

The  recipients for the  2006  Outstanding Seafarers of the Year Award  (OSYA) include  DR. FELECITO P. DALAGUETE, CAPT. EDGAR A. ALANO, C/E/ JESUS BOADO ASPIRAS, C/M EDGAR ROXAS MARTINEZ (POSTHUMOUS). C/M ANDY MORTILLANO  . 

The    winners of the 2006  Oratorical contest for maritime students  are Cadet Jayson de Torres PMI - QC as grand winner for his piece “FILIPINO SEAFARERS: OUR PRIDE!”, Romel L. Cleofas of TIP-Manila,  Second Place for his piece  “THE FILIPINO SEAFARERS”; and Karlo Tagulo of PMI-Manila , Third Place for his piece“A TRIBUTE TO THE FILIPINOS”. 

Established in 2006,  the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC), otherwise known as the Seafarers’ Bill of Rights, incorporates and builds on sixty eight existing maritime labour conventions and recommendations, as well as more general fundamental principles, to ensure  minimum requirements for decent working and living conditions for all seafarers including recruitment and placement practices, conditions of employment, hours of work and rest, repatriation, annual leave, payment of wages, accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering, health protection, occupational safety and health, medical care, onshore welfare services and social protection. MLC 2006 is specifically designed to establish a continuous ‘compliance awareness’ at every stage, from the national systems of protection up to the international system.  It is considered as the "fourth pillar of  international maritime law along with the  other pillars , International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS),  International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), and International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships(MARPOL)

The 22nd National Seafarers Day is all  set on September 24,2017  with the theme "Marinong Filipino: Nag-uugnay sa Mundo!". 

The #NSD22 #NSD2017 activities nationwide led by the #ApostleshipoftheSea ( #AOS ) include the Memorial at Sea, High Mass, Oratorical/ Art/ Photo Contest, Harana by the Bay, Boodlefight, Karaoke challenge, and the Search for Top Ten Outstanding Maritime Students. One of the highlights is the Grand Parade to be participated in by more than 4000 stakeholders from maritime schools, government agencies, manning agencies, training centers, maritime organizations, unions, families and private institutions