Press Release
January 2014

Department of Agriculture
Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources
Regional Office No. 5
Email: region5@bfar.da.gov.ph
Website: www.bfar.da.gov.ph
Telefax (054) 361-2326

Bicol tops FishR

Bicol Region ranks number one in the country on the National Program for Fisherfolk Registration (FishR), with a total of 94,831 fisherfolk registered online, more than 30,000 thousand ahead of its closest counterpart Region 8 with over 61,000, according to the FishR database dated January 24, 2014.

Masbate province has the highest number of registered fisherfolk with 38,019, followed by Sorsogon with 17,471 inched closely by Camarines Sur with 17,174. Albay, Camarines Norte, and Catanduanes with 10,745, 5,993 and 5,429 registered fisherfolk respectively.

The municipalities of Bulan, Sorsogon and Aroroy, Masbate have the highest number of registrants in Bicol with over 4,500 each.  Sorsogon City with 4,614 registrants and Legaspi City with 3,164 are the cities that top the registration.

Fisherfolk pass their registration form to the Municipal Agricultural Officer during the Mobile Registration of FishR held last August 7,2013 at Brgy. Agca, Tinambac, Camarines Sur.

BFAR -5 Director Dennis Del Soccorro addresses the participants during the regional launching of FishR in Legaspi City.

In the management conference of BFAR last January 13, Regional Director Dennis V. Del Socorro announced the good news and said that the performance of Bicol on the fisherfolk registration was the result of appropriate strategies and initiatives implemented by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR)-Bicol, Provincial Fisheries Offices and Local Government Units (LGUs).

 Additional personnel to closely monitor the program were hired. The Office of the Provincial Government (OPAG), Municipal Agriculture Officers (MAO), City Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Councils (CFARMCs) Municipal FARMCs, Barangay FARMCs, Provincial/Municipal Agricultural and Fishery Councils (PAFC/MAFC) also assisted in the implementation of the program.

After the regional launching of the program last July 23, 2013, municipal launchings was also conducted throughout the region by BFAR and LGUs. Various campaign strategies were implemented like Mobile registration, walk-in registration, and assemblies to ensure that every fisherfolk in the region shall be registered.

2M (Php 2,000,000) pesos worth of livelihood projects will be awarded to the top 6 LGUs in every region that will be included to the top one hundred municipalities, Fifteen (15) pesos per person registered will be given to the Agricultural Technologist and Fishery Technologist to motivate them to register more fisherfolk.  In addition, Albay Governor Joey Salceda committed during the regional launching to provide 1M (Php 1,000,000.00) to every municipality in Albay that will make it to the first 100 municipalities. Governor Migz Villafuerte also committed fifteen thousand pesos (Php 15,000.00) to the first ten barangays in Camarines Sur that will finish the registration.

The National Program for Municipal Fisherfolk Registration aimed to fast-track, enhance and complete the municipal fisherfok registration as required under the Fisheries Code of 1998.

Upon completion of the program, the Bureau will come up with a complete and updated national database that would be necessary in designing technical and livelihood programs for the fisherfolk community.

 Aside from establishing Comprehensive Fishery Information System, it will also aid the local municipalities for managing, regulating, conserving, and protecting its fishery resources.

Prepared by:                                                                                                     Noted: 

         Original Signed                                                                                     Original  Signed
ANDREW FRANCO L. JOVEN                                                                  SARAH FLORA B. BALARES
                RFIS                                                                                                  OIC, RFIS

Approved by:

Original Signed
DENNIS V. DEL SOCORRO
Regional Director