Through capacity-building and other support, the IFAD-funded Northern Mindanao Community Initiatives and Resource Management Project has helped the municipal government and local organizations first halt and then reverse this trend.

In the 1990s, the once-abundant fish catch in Cortes started falling dramatically. As Joel Alzate, the chairperson of the Multi-purpose Cooperative in Mabahin, a coastal village in Cortes, recalls, “Our sea was empty. We barely had fish to eat, and whatever good fish we caught had to be sold to buy rice.” Causes of the decline included the use of more efficient fishing gear, increased market demand, and rampant illegal and destructive fishing practices.

The then mayor of Cortes, Dennis Yu, decided to tackle the problem head on. A municipal law enforcement team was created and mandated to provide training in coastal law enforcement. A ban was imposed on the use of destructive fishing methods, and a closed season was declared, coinciding with the spawning season of the siganid species, a popular inexpensive fish. Boat and fisher registration and fish gear licensing were made mandatory. At the same time, information campaigns in schools and folk festivals sought to gain public support for effective coastal resource management.

The Northern Mindanao project started work in Cortes in 2002, joining various other NGO and internationally funded projects operating in the municipality. The IFAD-funded project benefited all the coastal villages in Cortes, although it only covered four directly, including Mabahin.

Mabahin Marine Protected Area   

To address both environmental degradation and poverty in this small community, the municipality decided in 2006 to legally establish a marine protected area in a 40-acre area where a privately run fish sanctuary already existed. The area includes mangrove, sea grass and coral reef ecosystems in a contiguous area, a very rare occurrence.

The Northern Mindanao project led activities in community organizing, provided logistical and technical assistance, and funded local capability-building in participatory coastal resource assessment and in the establishment and management of marine protected areas.

By early 2007, even though the Mabahin Marine Protected Area was a legally established entity and a major advocacy campaign had been conducted to secure community buy-in, many villagers remained both sceptical and hostile. Fishers felt that the reserve was putting them out of work and consequently had few qualms about ignoring the no-fishing zone.

Members of the Mabahin Multipurpose Cooperative, which was mandated to manage the area, took turns guarding it day and night – but as fish grew larger and more abundant, commercial and local poachers redoubled their efforts, often using sophisticated techniques that allowed them to catch thousands of pesos worth of fish in just a few hours.

To address these problems, the project funded the development of a management plan and a community-based monitoring system for the area. It also financed the purchase of a patrol boat and essential equipment.

After six months, community support had grown significantly as local people began to notice an increase in the numbers of good-sized fish caught outside the protected area. Realizing the economic benefits they could enjoy by managing their resources well, even villagers who were not members of the cooperative joined efforts to drive away poachers.

Perseverance pays dividends

A recent survey in the area shows that live coral cover has increased nearly 22 per cent; the number of butterfly fish has more than doubled; and sea grass beds in the reserve’s vicinity also show an excellent cover (82 per cent). Local fishers of Mabahin can now catch 10 kilograms of fish in an hour, compared with the mere 2 kilograms they averaged in 2005.

The area’s management plan will soon be integrated into the municipal development plan, thereby institutionalizing its financial support in future.

Pedro Trinidad, the current mayor of Cortes, comments: “Strong political will was needed to make the marine protected area work, but, in the final analysis, it is the people themselves who really determine the future of their environment and coastal resources.”

He adds: “Our fisheries and coastal resources are the last frontier on which present and future generations will depend for their existence because our once lush and verdant forests are gone.”

Source: IFAD