CadetsPlus Baliwag reached a new level, with an addition of two pilot topics into the programme – Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Seafarer’s Mental Health; and for the first time had its graduation ceremony in the training academy.

Some 43 cadets from maritime schools in the Philippines and sponsored by their shipping employers, concluded their CadetsPlus training on 15 December, with a graduation ceremony held in Baliwag Maritime Academy, San Rafael, Culacan, Philippines. There to endorse their sea-readiness was the Dean of Maritime Education )School Director) Capt Maximo M Pestano and the School Administrator Conne Ma Concepcion.

The cadets underwent their training from 3 to 14 December 2018 at the Baliwag Maritime Academy. During their 10-day programme, they learned to be better seafarers through the emphasis on communcation adn active conversation, soft skills and personal development, legislative requirement, safety and environmental protection and shipboard integration. A special feature in this programme was the inclusion of CSR and mental health topics. On the CSR topic, the cadets were given an opportunity under guidance to plan and organise a community outreach programme. The selection of venue, coordination with selected home, planning of activities, procurement of donation gifts and logistics were all arranged by the cadets. With the subject on seafarers’ mental health, the cadets learnt concepts of stress, with the focus on potential stress at sea, and how to apply coping techniques.

WMI is proud that CadetsPlus pre-boarding programme continues to improve itself in its offerings. This truly benefits cadets around the Asian region, by promoting collective training, education and upgrading of their skills.

“This programme enables cadets of varying backgrounds to gather and interact. As one of the trainers, I had the opportunity to gain first hand experience of trianing conducted in a different country. For the cadets, they got to experience the training and living environment in Baliwag Maritime Academy, which might have been quite different from their academies in other parts of the Philippines. We found the cadets very eager in their participation and they gave their best in all the activities, whether in classroom or for the CSR.”

– Liew Hong Lin, WMI Lecturer