BAGUIO CITY – Fisherfolk leaders from different parts of the country believe that the lucrative fishing industry still has a bright future in helping perk up the economic growth due to the availability of vast water resources which could be tapped for commercial fish production even at the height of the El Niño phenomenon or prolonged dry spell.

This was the sentiment raised by hundreds of fisherfolk officers during the 6th National Convention of Fisherfolks held in this mountain resort city in order to strengthen partnership with the government in fisheries management.

According to Gil Adora, assistant director for technical services of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), while rivers and lakes are drying up due to the serious negative effects of the onslaught of El Niño in the country, the trend that must be adopted by the fisherfolks is to develop fish production areas in the vast track of salt waters in different parts of the country in order to sustain fish self-sufficiency in the coming years.

From 2006 to 2008, the fishery sector nationwide have been realizing a six to eight percent growth but it dropped to 2.6-percent in 2009 because the country’s fishery sector, particularly in Northern Luzon, was ruined by typhoons “Ondoy” and “Pepeng” that hit the country late last year.

Adora asserted the country’s fishing industry should be tapped and supported by concerned agencies coupled with the resilience of fisherfolks so that it will also make a difference in the country’s economic growth because of the existence of vast tracks of coastal areas which could serve as production areas for various kinds of fishes.

The Philippines is the eighth top fish producer in the world with its coastline length of about 36,289 kilometers.

Situated within the coral triangle reef, scientists have recognized the Philippines as the center of marine biodiversity, thus, fisheries, which includes municipal, commercial, and aquaculture is agriculture’s main growth driver contributing about 25 percent of the total agriculture produce in the country.