Affiliations: [a] College of Agriculture, Western Mindanao State University, Philippines | [b] Institute for Governance and Rural Development, College of Public Affairs and Development University of the Philippines Los Baños, Philippines
Abstract: Since the Philippines is archipelagic with a lot of major fishing grounds of which many are considered ecologically threatened, a closed fishing season is invariably an expected recourse. The Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior and Local Government enforced a three-month fishing ban in 2011-2014 in Zamboanga Peninsula, intended to conserve the sardine species and sustain the operations of its industries. Since a closed fishing season entails not only benefits but also costs, its expiration in 2014 raised calls to empirically validate its outcome. Premised on the meagre information on the impact of closed fishing season and fishing regulations in the country—this study assesses the effects of the Closed Fishing Season Policy on the sardine fishing and processing sectors by looking into the variation in sardine catch, sardine production and level of employment. Utilising a survey research design, the article contends that the fishing regulation had a favourable impact on the sardine industries; the commercial and municipal fishers grew their sardine catch, and the canning and bottling processors benefited from increasing production and rising number of workers. Sardine catch and production are expected to surpass the previous peaks in volume in the coming years, and the number of workers exceeded the previous highest level prior to the enactment of the closed fishing season. The findings debunk the zero-sum expectations and offer a promising prospect for justifying the continuation of the fishing regulation, the institutionalisation of the Policy, and its adoption in other parts of the country.
