The Too Big to Ignore (TBTI) Philippines recently held a three-day symposium highlighting the importance of small-scale fisheries (SSF) in the country during the First Philippines Small-scale Fisheries National Symposium (PSSFNS 1).
The symposium, held at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) Iloilo City campus, sought to give attention to SSF in the country by gathering various stakeholders such as fishers, fisheries managers, students, researchers, local government unit representatives, non-government organizations and advocacy groups, practitioners, media, and artists.
The theme for the event, held from Oct. 16 – 18, 2024, was “Small-scale Fisheries in the Philippines are Too Big to Ignore.” It featured plenary sessions, regular scientific sessions, regular art sessions, and student competitions.
The symposium themes were inland and marine SSF; SSF management and governance; economics of SSF; socio-cultural aspects of SSF; climate change and resilience of SSF; gender in SSF; and technology and innovation in SSF.
The co-organizers of the symposium were Carlos Hilado Memorial State University; Central Philippines State University; Northern Iloilo State University; State University of Northern Negros; and the University of Antique, in partnership with UP and the Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
The DA-National Fisheries Research and Development Institute (NFRDI) and TBTI Philippines also launched the book “Portrait of Small-Scale Fishers in the Philippines” on Oct. 17 as part of the PSSFNS 1 plenary sessions.
Dr. Alice Joan Ferrer, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and TBTI Executive Director, and Dr. Harold Monteclaro, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences Dean, are editors of the book that was conceptualized with the purpose of shedding light on the question of what a small-scale fisher is in the country.
