A delegation from the Philippines’ Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources is visiting Palau to discuss potential cooperation with Palau.
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Environment ( MAFE) Steven Victor said in his letter to members of the Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) last month that the delegation is planning to visit Palau. Minister Victor said the dates have not been confirmed.
With the Philippine delegation during the visit are also representatives from fishing companies from Navotas and General Santos City.
“The purpose of the delegation’s visit to Palau is to explore and discuss mechanisms of cooperation and to assess the viability of potential investments,” Victor said.
Victor is also requesting a courtesy visit to the OEK Senate Committees from the delegation.
General Santos City is dubbed as the tuna capital of the Philippines, it claims to be the largest producer of sashimi-grade tuna in the country.
General Santos’ fishing industry delivers a total daily capacity of 750 metric tons of fish.
Palau, a member of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement, which allocates tuna fishing quotas under its vessel-day scheme (VDS), has also sold a portion of its fishing days to Filipino firm RD Fishing Group.
The PNA controls the world’s largest sustainable tuna purse-seine fishery. The PNA’s VDS for purse-seiners sets a limit on the number of fishing days allowed in the region, requires an independent fisheries observer on board and the collection of detailed catch data, and includes an annual three-month moratorium on the use of fish-aggregating devices (FADs) and in-port transshipment for further monitoring.
RD Fishing Group, based in General Santos, The Philippines, has the largest fishing fleet in General Santos City, which is known as the “Tuna Capital of the Philippines,” according to the PNA.
RD Fishing Group, is the first firm based in The Philippines to buy fishing days from Palau.
Palau earns more than USD 5 million (EUR 4.1 million) annually from its tuna fishing days, according to the PNA.
Navotas meanwhile is one of the largest fish port in Southeast Asia.