A photo essay

A WORLD-CLASS MARITIME ACADEMY RISES IN BATAAN

There is no question that a big part of what keeps the Philippine economy going (and makes the numerous giant malls in the country teeming with people everyday) comes from remit-tances of Filipino expatriates and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) or "Bagong Bayani", as they are called by the government. One "Bagong Bayani" sub-group who appeared to be doing well and unchallenged were the Filipino seafarers. But that was only true until some-thing happened to the political map of the world.

With the crumbling of the Berlin Wall in 1989, new competitors (e.g. Russia, China, etc) have joined the traditional countries (e.g. Philippines, India, Pakistan, etc) in vying for a greater share of the lucrative seafaring market by intensifying their maritime training programs in all conceivable aspects including English language proficiency.

It was against this backdrop that the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP) was conceived and put into operation in 1999 on an 11-hectare lot in Kamaya Point, Brgy. Alas-asin, Mariveles, Bataan. (The main building used to be the luxiurious Kamaya Hotel owned by Speaker Joe de Venecia). Offering two four-year B.S. degree courses (Marine Transportation and Marine Engineering), it graduated its first batch of cadet officers in 2003 with some now serving as 2nd Officers and 3rd Engrs. on board ships of various shipping companies in the world’s merchant marine fleet.

 

1. The students in formation during the playing of the Philippine national anthem, singing of MAAP hymn and followed by reciting of "Panatang Makabayan".

 

2. The Dean, Dir. of Research and instructors at attention during the Monday morning colors.

 

3. Academy graduates who are taking upgrading courses (before boardingthe ship) while observing the morning colors.

 

4.  Start of the "pass in" review after the mass singing and recitation.

5.  Midshipmen officers saluting the colors as they pass by the grandstand.

 

6.  MAAP’s world-class swimming pool where Midshipmen take their P.E. lessons in Basic and Advanced Swimming under a bemedalled Filipino athlete-instructor.

 

7. A view of Corregidor Island (faint outline in center of picture) from MAAP’s Vessel Training Center.

 

8. MAAP’s mission-vision statement.

Equipping a school with the best physical facilities and staffing it with the best instruct-ors make the effort to turn out the best graduates possible only half won. To win the other half, (recruitment of the best learner materials available in the country) MAAP conducts qualifying entrance examinations beginning in September of each year in its various testing centers throughout the country to graduating high school students, ranks the result nationally and accepts only the first 150 in the list as new entrants (quota system) to its academic program at the start of the coming academic year..

Four years ago, a team of European Mission visited the school and reported that "MAAP is maybe the best equipped maritime school in the world." Words such as these do not stop MAAP’s Governing Board from pursuing innovations to bring its educational program up to authentic learning standard. On my visit last March, Iheard talk of a plan tobuild an artificial lake nearby and put a ship on that lake to provide the school with an "in campus" docking/undocking training facility for its Midshipmen.

Five of the pictures (taken last March) that follow show the school community observing Monday morning colors.

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