Marine conservation groups proposes creation of ocean, fisheries department

MANILA, Philippines - Marine conservation groups reiterated their call for the creation of a separate agency that will oversee the country’s fisheries and oceans.

They said the proposed agency, which shall be removed under the auspices of the Department of Agriculture, would address food security issues in the country.

“We are still in the planning stage. We continue to look for champions in the Senate and Congress,” Greenpeace Philippines’ Abigail Aguilar said on the sidelines of the Green Thumb Coalition press conference.

Aguilar said they were considering asking Senator Cynthia Villar to help them in their crusade.

“Senator Cynthia Villar is very consistent in helping us in issues like this and we are hoping for her continued support,” she added.

In a separate interview with The STAR, Oceana Philippines vice president Gloria Ramos said they have high hopes that a separate agency would be established to manage ffisheries and oceans following the statements of support from Senator Francis Pangilinan.

“Many of our senators understand the need for this. We hope to have more champions and we are cognizant of the process but we are determined to do this,” Ramos said.

“This is actually long overdue considering that the Philippines has one of the longest coastline in the world and is a center of global marine biodiversity,” she added.

Ramos said the DA should focus more on the terrestrial domain or the farmers, and the creation of a Department of Oceans and Fisheries.

“We forget that the poorest of the poor are living in the coastline areas and we need to prioritize food security in the country,” she said.

Latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed poverty incidence among fisherfolks reached 39.2 percent, the highest among the basic sectors of the society.