DA, BFAR tasked by Marcos to address illegal fishing

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to come up with comprehensive studies on the rehabilitation and maintenance of the country’s marine habitats.

The Presidential Communications Office said Marcos made the directive to address illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing (IUUF).

According to the PCO, Marcos had emphasized in a meeting on June 13 the need for the country to comply with its international commitments, particularly to the European Union, as regards preventing illegal fishing.

"He also highlighted the importance of addressing the concerns of fishery stakeholders by using a science-based approach to managing marine resources," the PCO said.

"With this, the DA and the BFAR were directed to work closely with the Office of the Executive Secretary to craft the necessary issuances to implement Fisheries Administrative Order (FAO) No. 266, series of 2020, which requires commercial fishing vessels (CFVs) to install vessel monitoring systems (VMS)," the PCO added.

The PCO also said the two agencies were tasked with studying the establishment of Strategic Agriculture and Fisheries Development Zones (SAFDZ) to provide fishery stakeholders with an area for sustainable fishing and reviewing the licenses of CFVs that fail to comply with FAO No. 266, series of 2020. —VBL, GMA Integrated News