PHILIPPINES : The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) will provide large fishing vessels to tuna catchers in Eastern Samar province to improve their fishing capabilities and production.

BFAR 8 (Eastern Visayas) Hannibal Chavez said on Tuesday they would train in August two fishermen’s groups in Eastern Samar in how to operate the 62-footer fiberglass fishing vessel with full machinery and accessories.

“The target is to implement the project within the year. For one year, the vessels’ operation is under the management of BFAR. If they are already capacitated, the vessel will be turned over to fisherfolk, but we are still there to monitor,” Chavez told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).

Each one of the large fishing vessels has four attached small fishing or catcher boats, which can move away from the mother boat to catch tuna in the Pacific Ocean. It has a storage facility that can carry about two metric tons of fish.

Dan de San Miguel, BFAR-8 provincial fishery director, said the beneficiaries are two fishermen’s associations in the towns of Guiuan and Balangkayan. “The provision of fishing vessel(s) will increase the capacity of our fishermen to catch more tuna. Usually, fishermen in Eastern Samar don’t go far to catch tuna since they always run out of supplies of food, water, and ice,” de San Miguel added.

Commonly, tuna fishing in Samar areas is on a small scale, with locals fishing in the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean using small motorboats only and lines waiting for tunas to bite.

Early this year, the BFAR-8 turned over a PHP39 million purse seine fishing vessel to members of the Northern Samar Pacific Towns Fishermen’s Cooperative. The fisheries bureau awarded the vessel through its Capacitating Municipal Fisherfolk Program designed to raise the capability of local fishers to contribute to the country’s annual tuna production.

The Pacific towns of the province and some areas in Eastern Samar are within the Tuna Conservation Management Zone (TCMZ), which is rich in tuna.

The vessel donated by BFAR to fishermen in Northern Samar made its first voyage on May 15-16, harvesting 1.5 tons of high-value species. The first test-fishing mission of the FV/DA-BFAR 2102 steel-hulled fish harvester within the Pacific Ocean on May 15-16 was successful. The vessel is still up for full turnover to the local fisherfolk group in Northern Samar as the BFAR and fisherfolk have yet to resolve some issues found during the test mission.

The region’s Pacific Ocean, particularly off the coast of Eastern and Northern Samar, is known for tuna fishing with about 600 tons every year, less than the 1,000 tons quota set by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. Over the past years, Filipino commercial fishermen gained access to the High Seas Pocket 1, where big tunas are found.

The High Seas Pocket 1 is the area bounded by the exclusive economic zones of the Federated States of Micronesia to the north and east, the Republic of Palau to the west, and the Republic of Indonesia and the Independent State of Papua New Guinea to the south.

(PNA)

MALAYSIA: Job opportunities and benefits from the Social Impact Management Plan (SIMP) will be seen once the Penang South Island (PSI) reclamation work begins. There will be some 600 marine and land-based jobs when reclamation is carried out over 18 months, with priority given to fishermen and local residents.

The positions range from licensed and professional roles to skilled and technical categories. Fishermen will also be given assistance in the form of bigger boats and engines, complete with accessories. Once the reclamation begins, there will be a 250m-wide navigation channel that enables them to go to sea regardless of the tide.

Recently, 11 fishermen took a seafarer course to learn about chartwork, rules and regulations, meteorology, basic training, general ship knowledge and general engineering. Permatang Tepi Laut fisherman Zazali Sirun, 55, said he appreciated the new knowledge.

“I have been a fisherman for over 20 years without knowing anything about maritime law. “Thanks to the opportunity from the Penang government through PSI, I have learned about counting nautical miles to plan my journey at sea, how to travel more safely and the regulations to abide by when at sea,” he said.

Eng Phaik Khoon, 49, from Gertak Sanggul, also said the seafarer course was useful to fishermen. “We learnt about maritime regulations and different types of buoys at sea,” he said.

Eng said although he had been a fisherman since he was 13, he didn’t know many things about navigating safely at sea before he attended the course.

Penang Infrastructure Corporation (PIC) chief executive officer Datuk Seri Farizan Darus said the project would foster growth for small businesses and amplify the multiplier effect within the entire southern community.

PIC is Penang government’s special purpose vehicle to implement the PSI project.

To date, 1,100 locals including fishermen have registered their interest for the available roles.

Source: The Star

MALAYSIA: Gerakan Ekonomi Malaysia says Penang’s development plan, especially the PSI, will critically impact the income and future of fishermen and affect local fish supply.

The government has been urged to stop the Penang South Island (PSI) reclamation project and formulate a comprehensive policy to guarantee a sustainable livelihood for fishermen.

Gerakan Ekonomi Malaysia president Armin Baniaz Pahamin said today Penang's development plan, especially the PSI, will critically impact the income and future of fishermen and affect local fish supply.

Armin said unfortunately, the government has taken no action to provide an alternative source of income.

Sungai Batu Fishing Unit head Zakaria Ismail's statements and views need to be taken seriously as they also touch on food security and the environment, he said.

The Sungai Batu Fishing Unit, together with the Penang South Fishermen's Association, Penang Fishermen's Association (PEN Mutiara) and Penang State Fishermen's Association have strongly objected to the PSI project.

"The catch from the area sold through the Penang South Fishermen's Association alone amounts to RM6 million a year, with the catch exceeding 500 tonnes. This does not include the catch from south Kedah and north Perak in the same fishing area.

"The PSI project will not reduce but directly destroy the catch in the south of Penang, and this will affect food security and fish supply in Penang, Kedah and Perak."

Armin said 6,000 fishermen will lose their livelihood.

"The amount of aid provided to fishermen will continue to increase without a solution for the future. This has yet to factor in the impact of the PSI reclamation on nature."

In 2023, aid provided to fishermen in Penang increased to RM1.614 million from RM959,600 in 2022.

The Federal Government, through the Malaysian Fisheries Development Board (LKIM), also provides oil subsidies, fishing incentives, fishermen's insurance and fishermen's housing.

"Without comprehensive planning, fishermen will always need help. As such, the government needs to provide a policy to ensure the future of fishermen. Fertile fishing areas need to be gazette, protected and preserved."

Armin said while fishing is a profitable industry in developed countries, fishermen in Malaysia still fall in the low-income group.

"One way (to help them) is through the amalgamation of fishing villages under professional management, adapting the latest technology and business models that ensure the catch can guarantee income throughout the year, including the monsoon season."This can be achieved by processing canned fish or freezing fish."

In May, the state government announced that it would do away with two of three islands in the controversial PSI project, which means a scaling down of 49 per cent of the total project.

Source: The News Strait Times