The Philippines remains the world’s leading supplier of seafarers, according to a report by the Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO) and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).
On Saturday, the Maritime Industry Authority ( Marina) cited the recently-published 2026 Seafarer Workforce Report, issued by BIMCO and ICS, that saw the country topping the world’s five largest seafarer-supplying countries.
This report saw the country supplying 203,179 officers and 256,968 ratings, ahead of countries such as India, China, Russia, and Indonesia.
“Data from shipping companies also showed that Filipinos are the leading nationality among STCW-certified [Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers] seafarers serving aboard the world merchant fleet, followed by Ukrainians, Indians, Romanians, and Poles. Filipinos also ranked first in both the officer and rating categories,” the Marina said.
The agency said the recent findings “reaffirm the Philippines’ leading role in the global maritime workforce and the continued demand for the competence and professionalism of Filipino seafarers in international shipping.”
“The Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) continues to strengthen the country’s maritime education, training, assessment, and certification systems to keep Filipino seafarers competent, globally competitive, and compliant with international standards. The Agency also continues to pursue reforms that improve the quality of maritime training and certification and address the evolving skills and competency needs of the global shipping industry,” Marina added.
According to the workforce report, the global supply this year was over 2.5 million seafarers, while the global demand for STCW-certified seafarers in 2026 is estimated to stand at 2,547,790 (1,088,080 officers and 1,459,710 ratings).
“The global supply of seafarers in 2026 is estimated at 2,565,580 seafarers, of which 1,048,980 are officers and 1,516,600 are ratings,” the report said.
“According to estimates of national contributions to the current global supply of seafarers, the five countries reporting the largest numbers of seafarers in 2026 are shown below. Together, these five seafarer supply countries represent 56.25 percent of the global seafarer workforce supply,” it added.
The Seafarer Workforce Report is issued by BIMCO and ICS every five years.
