A government investment released through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources’ (BFAR) Fisheries and Coastal Resiliency (FishCoRe) Project yielded over PHP1 million in sales for a fisherfolk group in Caraga Region this month.
In 2025, the Kauswagan Fisherfolk Association (KFA), a 24-member group in the coastal village of Kauswagan in Cabadbaran City, Agusan del Norte, received a PHP1.8 million FishCoRe project, which included a 10-meter Norwegian high-density polyethylene (HDPE) cage installed at the Cabadbaran Mariculture Park.
“The HDPE cage from BFAR is a big factor for us. Its technology is appropriate and helped us in our bangus production project,” said KFA chairperson Jerry Dejarmi in an interview on Wednesday.
He added that aside from the HDPE cage, the group also received around 15,000 bangus fingerlings from BFAR-13 (Caraga).
“The counterpart we provided to the government support was our efforts to make this project succeed and profitable,” Dejarmi said.
He recognized the contributions of the members who tirelessly worked to nurture their HDPE cage amid past bad weather conditions and other challenges.
Last week, the group’s harvest produced 6.6 metric tons of bangus in various sizes and generated PHP1.062 million in gross sales when marketed in Surigao City.
Dejarmi said most of their harvest were large-sized bangus, sold at PHP168 per kg., while medium-sized were priced at PHP150 per kg., and small-sized at PHP140 per kg.
“I witnessed the harvesting, and I was glad that all our efforts had paid off,” said Angelica Ranque, a member of the association, in a separate interview.
She is also thankful for the government’s support to their group, which has allowed them to improve their lives.
“In the fish-caging project, frequent sailing among us, fisherfolk, is already limited and prevents overfishing. Since last year, we have focused our attention on our HDPE project,” Dejarmi said.
He encouraged other fisherfolk in the province to unite and register with the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture, and engage BFAR for collaboration and support.
In a statement, BFAR-13 said the FishCoRe Project is part of the Modern and Resilient Livelihood Investment (MARLIN) 2.1 component, which aims to promote improved aquaculture practices and infrastructure to enhance productivity and resilience among fishing communities.
The harvested bangus of KFA, the agency added, has provided a direct source of income for group members while contributing to the region’s fish supply and reinforcing mariculture as a viable fisheries intervention for local fishing communities. (PNA)
