WWF-Philippines Installs Tracking Devices on Fishing Boats to Promote Sustainable Seafood
February 2020
Municipal fishermen from Tiwi, Bicol, hold up their new tracking devices, alongside WWF-Philippines Fisheries Technical Officer, David N. David. Fishermen in Mindoro and Bicol volunteered to participate in pilot testing the new eCDTS technology. Photograph © Alo Lantin / WWF-Philippines
Throughout the third week of February, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Philippines, together with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Oceans and technical partner Futuristic Aviation and Maritime Enterprise (FAME), installed tracking devices onto municipal fishing boats in Mindoro Strait and Lagonoy Gulf, in an effort to introduce traceability measures to local fisheries.
A fisherman stands with his new tracking devices. The fishermen participating in these first pilot tests acknowledge the benefits that this new technology can provide to their livelihoods, which are heavily reliant on productive fisheries. Photograph © Alo Lantin / WWF-Philippines
The tracking devices are to be part of an electronic catch documentation traceability system (eCDTS) that allows authorities to monitor where fishermen are catching their fish. The goal of the eCDTS is to allow fish catches to be traced from the moment they are caught, right until they are sold on the market. Doing so will help ensure that fish is legally caught, is properly sourced, and is both environmentally and socially sustainable.
FAME CEO Arcelio Fetizanan demonstrates to municipal fishermen how to use the new traceability technology and what data the trackers will be collecting. Photograph © Alo Lantin / WWF-Philippines
The project is also an avenue for data gathering. As the fishermen are out at sea, the trackers will record the path these fishermen take and where their catches take place. This data will then show where fishermen usually go to catch tuna, which would prove useful in the development of effective sustainability policies.
Fishermen are given tracking devices, to be installed onto their boats. Photograph © Alo Lantin / WWF-Philippines
USAID Oceans first conceptualized the project in response to ongoing concerns over illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing within Southeast Asia. The region’s fisheries supply food and income for over 200 million people. Many of its fisheries, however, face collapse due to overfishing and unsustainable extraction practices. The organization, together with the Southeast Asia Fisheries Development Center (SEAFDEC) and the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF), is looking to bring accountability to regional fishing practices.
Fishermen from Mindoro discuss their questions about the eCDTS project with staff from WWF-Philippines, FAME, and USAID Oceans. Photograph © Ana Chavez / WWF-Philippines
In order to introduce the project to the various nations of Southeast Asia, USAID Oceans partners with national fisheries agencies and civil society organizations located in each country. The organization works with WWF-Philippines to bring eCDTS technology to local fisheries.
Technical staff from FAME install a tracking device onto a municipal fishing boat in Tiwi, Bicol. Photograph © Alo Lantin / WWF-Philippines
“The first local launch of this project was in General Santos for commercial fisheries using the eCDT system developed by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), and for municipal fisheries, the use of FAME technology using transponders and radio frequency. USAID Oceans thought of trying the same thing (FAME technology) with municipal fishermen, though, which is why they approached us. They heard about our work with municipal fishermen in Bicol and Mindoro. We figured this would be a good opportunity to test the technology on a small scale,” said WWF-Philippines Fisheries Technical Officer David N. David. WWF-Philippines has operated in Lagonoy Gulf and Mindoro Strait since 2011. The organization works with municipal fishermen for the promotion of sustainable fishery laws and practices.
A tracking device is installed onto a municipal fishing boat in Mindoro. Photograph © Ana Chavez / WWF-Philippines
“We’re really looking for key technologies that can cater to small scale fisheries, in terms of traceability and catch documentation,” added David.
Pilot testing will be conducted with the newly-installed tracking devices. Afterwards, USAID Oceans and WWF-Philippines plan on expanding the project to other key fisheries in the country.
A municipal fishing boat on the shores of Mindoro. Around 200 million people rely on the fisheries of Southeast Asia for food and livelihood. Photograph © Ana Chavez / WWF-Philippines
For more information, please contact:
Ms. Joann Binondo
Sustainable Tuna Partnerships Project Manager
jbinondo@wwf.org.ph
For media arrangements, please contact:
Ms. Pam Luber
Integrated Communications Manager
pluber@wwf.org.ph
