By Lilybeth Ison/Philippine News Agency
ROXAS CITY — Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol on Monday commended stakeholders in the just concluded seaborne law enforcement operations in the Visayan Sea.
“I commend the men and women of the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR), the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and the Philippine National Police-Maritime Group, who carried out the month long seaborne operations with utmost dedication and diligence in the name of our fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing,” said Piñol in his speech read by DA Undersecretary and BFAR National Director Eduardo Gongona at the culminating program of the Visayan Sea seaborne operations.
“We are all aware that IUU fishing undermines the sustainability of our fisheries production. This is especially true here in the Visayan Sea which is home to diverse marine resources shared by the five provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Masbate, and Capiz,” he said.
Piñol said all these efforts are directed towards the fulfillment of the government’s pledge to achieve food security.
A traditional rich fishing ground owing to its dense marine habitats such as mangrove forests of 40 square kilometers, seagrass beds of 59 square kilometers and coral reefs of 789 square kilometers, the Visayan Sea was eyed to be the Philippines’ very first fisheries management area (FMA) considering its importance as a fishing ground that needs serious measures against IUU fishing.
And with the support of concerned local government units, an Ecosystems Approach to Fisheries Management Framework (EAFM) for the conservation, protection, and restoration of the Visayan Sea has finally been established.
This makes the management of the Visayan Sea more holistic, science-based, and with wide participation from various stakeholders.
“As we highlight today our protection and conservation efforts for the Visayan Sea, it is also relevant and timely that we are coming together to celebrate, along with other concerned government and non-government organizations, the start of the Ocean Month Celebration this whole month of May which is focused on the theme: “Free the Sea from Marine Debris,” Piñol said.
Meanwhile, Atty. Gloria Estenzo Ramos, Vice President of Oceana Philippines, also lauded the collaboration among the BFAR, LGUs, and law enforcement agencies in effecting a month-long Seaborne Patrol Operations in the Visayan Sea.
“The strengthening of the monitoring and surveillance system is much-needed coupled with science-based and participatory decision-making in fisheries management in each of the Management Board of each FMA,” said Ramos in a statement emailed to the Philippine News Agency.
“These are beneficial not only to our marine biodiversity but also to our artisanal fisherfolk who are heavily dependent on the rich fisheries resources in the municipal waters for their food and livelihood,” she said.
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