The increasing unemployment rate among Filipino fisherfolk may jeopardize the supply of fish and food security in the Philippines, Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) said on Sunday, Oct 23.
Small-scale fishermen, according to the group, are now being forced to seek alternative jobs, such as project-based construction works, to make ends meet amid the soaring fuel price in the country.
“ highly alarming. his forced livelihood change of fishers will have long-term consequences to our local fish supply, food security, and market prices. This should alarm us as an archipelagic country,” said Pamalakaya National Chairperson Fernando Hicap.
Aside from the soaring fuel prices, Hicap said another factor for the increasing unemployment rate among the fishing sector is the ongoing reclamation projects across the archipelago.
Pamalakaya has been urging the administration for the provision of a P15,000 production subsidy to the marginalized sectors. Apart from this, the group is also pushing for the temporary suspension of excise tax on major oil products. The implementation of these measures, according to Pamalakaya, will immediately alleviate the suffering of small-scale fishermen.
“Our demands are not as complicated as they seem. All it takes is a strong political will from the current administration,” Hicap reiterated.