National and local officials and leaders of marine conservation gathered in Davao City for a three day “Partners’ Forum” to come up with strategies in protecting the rich marine waters of the country.
Started October 9 at the Ritz Hotel Garden Oases, the more than 400 participants exchanged learning and strategies on how to further improve management of the marine resources.
Organized by Strengthening Marine Protected Areas to Conserve Marine Key Biodiversity Areas in the Philippines (SMARTSeas PH Project), a marine conservation project led by Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Biodiversity Management Bureau and supported by the United Nations Development Programme and Global Environment Facility and co-organized by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) the project aims to achieve three outcomes: 1) improved management effectiveness of marine protected areas (MPA) and MPA network; 2) improved financial sustainability of management of MPA and MPA network; and 3) establish enabling policy framework for marine biodiversity conservation.
“This was a forum where learning and lessons from the past years of SmartSeas ay pag-uusapan ng mga partners kung aano mapatingkad ang management ng ating marine resources,” said Vincent V. Hilomen, project manager in an interview.
The three outcomes of the project are expected to capacitate the local government unit leaders and peoples organizations on MPA management by helping them improve their management plans and reactivate the MPA management body.
SmartSeas will be piloted in five sites of the country: Verde Island Passage (VIP), Palawan South, Cebu Canyon Strait, Davao Gulf and Lanuza Bay. These sites have common issue, which is the degradation of a portion of their respective marine resources.
“May mga uniqueness sa bawat area. Like the Verde island Passage, ito ang napili as the center of biodiversity, Palawan is chosen with an area that has malawak na mangroves, Lanuza is popular for its ridge to reef, Davao Gulf ‘s governannce is a perfect example for all the Philippines, and Cebu is the only NIPAS area in the whole country,” he said.
He said the lessons expected in this project is the effective management on marine protected areas, capability of the people who will manage the protected areas, finances, and where to get the budget to fund for the management of the areas.
“Ang ating problema sa marine resources ay matagal na considering Philippines is an archipelago, the second largest worldwide. Ang condition ng ating karagatan ay hindi maganda. Napakalaki nung degraded portion ng ating resources,” Mr. Hilomen said.
