Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan on Tuesday, 23 December, said the increased funding for the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) is expected to help protect Filipino fisherfolk, particularly those operating in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

The bicameral conference committee raised the BFAR budget by more than P600 million from the House version, bringing it to P11.76 billion.

“This is still far from the budget needed for our fishers. Their essential job is not only very hard, but those in the West Philippine Sea also face risks from foreigners. But at least, the focus on their plight has begun,” Pangilinan stressed.

“We want to build momentum for increasing funds for them. It’s difficult to realize food security if the people who bring food from the sea are ignored. Fishers are frontliners, yet many of them go hungry,” he added.

Latest Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data from 2023 rank fisherfolk among the country’s poorest basic sectors, with a poverty incidence of about 27.4 percent — roughly one in three fishers — alongside Indigenous Peoples and farmers.

While overall poverty declined in many sectors between 2021 and 2023, fisherfolk continued to lag behind, reflecting how broad economic growth and generic anti-poverty programs have failed to reach coastal communities.

“According to the PSA, from 2018 to 2021, among basic sectors, fisherfolk also recorded the biggest increase in poverty incidence,” Pangilinan said, noting that poverty among fisherfolk rose by 4.4 percentage points due to economic and pandemic-related shocks.

Studies and nutrition surveys also show deep food insecurity in fishing households, with higher rates of underweight, thin, and stunted children compared to non-fisherfolk families.

Notable increases in BFAR’s proposed 2026 budget include funding for monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) to combat illegal fishing, as well as a new P150-million allocation for mobile water treatment and desalination systems for fishing households.

BFAR’s MCS funding rose from P1.08 billion to P1.41 billion, reflecting stronger enforcement against illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.

The senator stressed that proper and sustained spending of the budget is crucial.

“Fish stocks decline, and seafood prices rise due to illegal fishing. Protecting our seas is not an environmental luxury; it is a food security necessity,” Pangilinan said.

“If illegal fishing continues, prices rise, incomes fall, and hunger worsens,” he added.