BFAR eyes insuring fisherfolk by 2016

CEBU, Philippines – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-7 is eyeing to insure thousands of fisherfolk by next year.

The fisherfolk are first advised though to register under the Municipal Fisherfolk Registry of coastal local government units.

“BFAR is planning to insure our fisherfolk to help and protect their welfare,” BFAR assistant regional director Allan Poquita said.

“We encourage our fishermen to register so that later on they can claim possible benefits and other insurances,” he added.

To achieve this, Poquita said they will be partnering with the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation to provide insurance coverage to fishery programs and projects to protect the fishermen in the region from the impact of the climate change and natural calamities.

PCIC is expected to provide insurance coverage for fishing equipment like boats and fishing gear, accident insurance, seaweeds and aquaculture facilities, among others that would be damaged by calamities.

The BFAR, for its part, will shoulder the total premium cost of the participating LGU as provided for under the insurance scheme.

Poquita said they will allocate P300 premium fee for each fisherman.

The milestone is a step closer toward fulfilling the 16-year-old Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998, which mandates the government to have a complete registry of municipal fisherfolk.

As of December 22, BFAR, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture, recorded a total of 120,364 registered fisherfolk in the region out of the estimated .5 million (500,000) fisherfolk.

There are a total of 1,639,859 registered fisherfolk nationwide.

To cover the target fisherfolk, Poquita said they are pushing for the extensive implementation of Fisherfolk Registration (FishR) to also give face to the legitimate fishermen in the country.

The FishR allows the agency to come up with a national database that would aid LGUs in managing, regulating, conserving, and protecting their fishery resources. Also, it develops and promotes a simplified and standardized national registration system for municipal fisherfolk.

The FishR database will enable the government to bring basic services to municipal fisherfolk who are among the poorest in the country.

According to BFAR, 39.2 percent of Filipino fisherfolk live below the poverty line.

The BFAR official explained that the Registry System for Basic Sector in Agriculture and Fisheries has the list of fisherfolk in the country and the FishR will serve to validate the data that comes along with the pictures of the registered members.

Poquita further added that the program strongly needs the support of concerned LGUs, especially those in coastal areas. —/NSA (FREEMAN)