BFAR to construct more fish landing centers in Eastern Visayas

TACLOBAN CITY, Jan. 18 (PNA) –The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) will construct six additional community fish landing centers (CFLC) in the region this year.

Recipients of additional facilities are Maasin City in Southern Leyte; Tanauan, Abuyog and San Miguel, Leyte; Sto. Niño, Samar; and San Policarpio, Eastern Samar.

Each CFLC has a budget of PHP3 million or five percent higher than last year’s project costs.

The additional cost of PHP150,000 is meant for administration of the National Anti-Poverty Commission, the agency tasked to monitor the impacts of this project.

“The facility has post-harvest equipments and tools that will enable fisher folks to preserve the quality of their fish and fishery products, which could be sold for a higher price,” said BFAR Eastern Visayas Regional Director Juan Albaladejo.

Last year, the fisheries bureau completed the construction of said facilities in Bobon, San Roque, Pambujan, and Catarman in Northern Samar; Paranas, Marabut, Tarangnan, and Daram in Samar province.

Recently, the central government turned over landing centers in Mapanas, Palapag, Gamay, Lapinig and Laoang in Northern Samar; Dulag, Leyte; and Catbalogan City in Samar.

The facilities will also be opened as venues for skills trainings on disaster-resilient fisheries-based livelihoods and resource management such as monitoring fish catch and stock assessment.

“We will be inviting mentors from the micro-enterprise sector that could impart knowledge to the fisher folks. This is really about boosting the socio-economic state of poor fishing villages,” 

Albaladejo added.

The National Anti- Poverty Commission recommended recipient areas based on poverty incidence, municipal density, fish production, number of registered fisherfolk and number of existing fish ports and fish landing areas.

The central government aims to complete the establishment of all CFLCs in the region by 2017.(PNA) FPV/SQM/Yazmin Ellen C. Espina (OJT)