AGUSAN DEL SUR, 3 February 2020 – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in CARAGA Region (BFAR-13) distributed 30 units of brand new fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) paddle boats, which were funded by the Special Area for Agricultural Development (SAAD) Program, to 30 fisherfolk in the municipality of Bunawan.
The 17-foot non-motorized FRP boats are part of the fishing boat & gear livelihood package under the capture fishery project of the program.
According to Philippine News Agency’s (PNA) report, the recipients were fisherfolk from barangays San Marcos and Nueva Era.
The turnover activity was led by BFAR-13 Assistant Regional Director Edgardo P. Balambao and Bunawan Mayor Sylvia Elorde.
BFAR-13 also conducted its monitoring activity in San Luis, Agusan del Sur. The field implementers visited the Doña Flavia Farmers Association in Barangay Nuevo Trabajo, where around 4,500 tilapia fingerlings are presently stocked in their fishpond.
Bunawan and San Luis are two out of the seven selected municipalities of BFAR SAAD based on their poverty incidence rankings in the province. Other municipalities covered by SAAD were Esperanza, La Paz, Veruela, Loreto, and Talacogon.
SAAD aids poor farmers and fisherfolk, who are from provinces with the highest poverty incidence rates in the country since 2017.
The program was implemented in Region 13 in 2019, covering the provinces of Agusan del Sur and Surigao del Sur. A total of Php 30 million budget was allocated for the BFAR SAAD in the region. ###
Writer: Natalianne Delos Reyes, SAAD Public Relations and Communications Officer
