Business Mirror
23 August 2014
More than 1.6 million Filipinos earn a living from resources from the sea and 85 percent, or 1.1 million, are near-shore fishermen.
It should be noted that almost 60 million people, or 56 percent of Filipinos, get their protein from fish.
However, their livelihood is under threat as the country’s marine resources have been in constant danger. Several factors, such as overfishing and overpopulation, have led to the destruction of the country’s aquatic resources. As the country’s population gets bigger, the demand for fish also gets bigger, causing a big strain on its supply.
Ironically, the fishermen have to share the blame as some of them use destructive methods, such as the use of dynamite, cyanide and other destructive gears.
But all is not lost for the country. In 2010 Arlington, Virginia-based Rare started working in the Philippines to help Filipinos protect and save its marine resources. As a global organization that has worked in almost 60 countries, Rare approaches marine-conservation problems by focusing on changing the people’s behavior.