July 29, 2022

WWF-Philippines Studies Ways to Encourage Fishers to Register and Renew their Licenses

WWF-Philippines’ STP 2 team runs a pre-test in Mindoro for a study on fisher registration and licensing. Photograph © WWF-Philippines
STP 2 Field Operation Manager Marietta Calacal interviews a fisher. Encouraging fishers to comply with registration and licensing laws requires understanding the issues fishing communities face. Photograph © WWF-Philippines

A new study being conducted by the World Wide Fund for Nature Philippines’ (WWF-Philippines) Sustainable Tuna Partnership 2 (STP 2) team is exploring ways to encourage fisherfolk to renew their fishing licenses.

Having fishers registered and licensed can be helpful towards managing fisheries, as it allows local government units (LGUs) to keep track of which fishers are authorized to operate under their jurisdiction. By having records of licensed fisherfolk, LGUs can regulate the number of fishers operating within their municipal waters.

While the Philippines Fisheries Code requires fishers to be registered, each LGU has its own policies and guidelines on fisherfolk licensing.

Among the Tuna Fisher Associations WWF-Philippines works with, only 64% of fishers have renewed their licenses. The STP 2 team hopes to have at least 80% of fishers renew their licenses by the year 2024.

“There are many hurdles that keep fishers from complying with licensing and registration laws. If we want fishers to comply, we have to first understand these hurdles, and to find ways to overcome them,” said WWF-Philippines Field Operation Manager Marietta Calacal.

A pilot research survey was tested with fisherfolk from Mamburao and Sablayan, Mindoro, between the 14th and 20th of July. 20 tuna fishers were interviewed as part of the survey tool testing. The tool was created together with Dr. Raul Bradecina, a fisheries expert and SUC President II of Partido State University.

The research survey will be adjusted according to results from the pilot test, to ensure the study is as comprehensive as possible. The study proper is slated to begin in August of 2022.

“We do what we can to meet our partner fishers halfway and to understand their problems. That way we can strive to address those problems, so that they may help us in our work towards sustainable fisheries,” said STP 2 Program Manager Joann Binondo.

WWF-Philippines will be rolling out a campaign based on these results, encouraging fisherfolk to comply with licensing and registration laws.

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For more information, please contact:

Ms. Joann Binondo
Overall Project Manager
Sustainable Tuna Partnership (STP)
jbinondo@wwf.org.ph
Ms. Chezka Guevarra
Assistant Manager | External Communications and Ambassador Programs
cguevarra@wwf.org.ph

About WWF

WWF is one of the world’s largest and most respected independent conservation organizations, with over 5 million supporters and a global network active in over 100 countries. WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the Earth’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world’s biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.

WWF-Philippines has been successfully implementing various conservation projects to help protect some of the most biologically-significant ecosystems in Asia since its establishment as the 26th national organization of the WWF network in 1997.

About Sustainable Tuna Partnership

Sustainable Tuna Project 2, more commonly known as STP 2, is a WWF project that succeeds the efforts of STP 1 and the Partnership Program Toward Sustainable Tuna.

Its efforts are aimed to promote tuna sustainability by empowering small-scale yellowfin tuna fishers and improving tuna fisheries management in Bicol and Occidental Mindoro. Learn more about the key outcomes of STP 2 here.