Background

Contributing approximately 60% of the world’s seafaring workforce, the APEC region plays a critical role in the international shipping industry. Maritime professionals from the APEC region are directly linked to APEC economies’ growth and prosperity considering that maritime transport represents more than 90% of all international commerce. Seafarers play a critical role as key workers, as the region has seen during global disruptions such as the COVID pandemic. It is expected that their importance will only continue to grow in the years to come.

Despite the important role that seafarers play in powering the global economy, they face challenges such as increasing efforts toward shipping de-carbonization, digitalization, and automation in the maritime sector. Meanwhile, there is a growing demand for respect for cultural diversity and the guarantee of human dignity among seafarers on-board. In all these cases, APEC governments, in partnership with stakeholders, have an important role in supporting seafarers to adapt to the sector’s rapid changes and develop their career paths in the digital age leveraging the in-depth knowledge and experiences that they have accumulated.

In 2017, APEC economies identified the value of creating a Seafarers Excellence Network (SEN) as an outcome of an APEC seminar on “Enhancing Global Capacity Building of Seafarers in the APEC Region.” Spearheaded by the Republic of Korea and with the overwhelming support of 11 participating economies (i.e. China; Indonesia; Malaysia; Papua New Guinea; Peru; The Philippines; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; The United States; and Viet Nam), the SEN has since developed into a collaborative body that exists as an Affiliate Network connected to the Maritime Experts Group (MEG) of APEC’s Transportation Working Group (TPTWG). The SEN is guided by the SENAP Busan Declaration, which demonstrates our dedication and future commitment for nurturing a highly educated, well-qualified, and efficient global maritime workforce. It commenced official operations in August 2018 with the opening of the secretariat office at Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology, Busan, Republic of Korea.