Fewer fisherfolk going out to sea due to gas prices, says farmers’ group
MANILA, Philippines — A farmer’s group on Wednesday decried the lack of government aid to fisherfolk, saying that there are fewer and fewer of them going out to sea.
During a senate hearing on April 8, Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) executive director Jayson Cainglet said that based on their surveys, the number of fisherfolk across several Luzon provinces have already halved.
Before gas prices surged a third week in a row, 30% of fisherfolk in Cavite, Bataan, Zambales and Pangasinan had already stopped catching fish.
“This week, because of the increase last Tuesday, almost 50%. That is why we are saying, while we do the math and do the interventions, the problem is real now,” Cainglet said in a mix of English and Filipino.
With oil prices rising so fast, the 50% is likely to increase in the coming days, he added
“'Yung mga marginal fishers, doon sa nakakapalaot pa, ang nakukuha nila is between 5 to 10 kilos nalang kasi they cannot go far,” Cainglet said.
(For the marginal fishers, for those who can still go out to sea, they are only getting 5 to 10 kilos because they cannot go far.)
The SINAG leader explained that the effects are not heavily felt yet since there are still commercial fisheries and imported fish products.
While the Department of Agriculture (DA) has been giving fuel subsidies worth P3,000 per fisherfolk, Cainglet said that this was not enough, especially since this was a one-time subsidy. The cost of going out to sea has tripled in the last few weeks.
Cainglet also said that there was a problem with how the DA was making lists for their fisherfolk beneficiaries. They only recorded fisherfolk who had a boat, when not every fisherfolk had one.
Oil prices have surged around the world since the US and Israel struck Iran, prompting Tehran to retaliate and close the Strait of Hormuz—a vital passage where 20% of the world’s oil passes through.
- Latest
- Trending
