More than 22,000 fisherfolk in the Bicol Region have received a total of PHP51.8 million in financial assistance under the Presidential Assistance for Farmers and Fisherfolk (PAFF), providing immediate relief to help sustain their livelihoods amid rising operational costs and other challenges affecting the fisheries sector.
In an interview on Tuesday, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Bicol spokesperson Rowena Briones said beneficiaries underwent a multi-stage identification and validation process to ensure that qualified recipients received the assistance.
She said the Department of Agriculture (DA)-BFAR Central Office initially generated a list of beneficiaries from three government databases – the Fisherfolk Registration System (FishR), Boat Registration System (BoatR), and the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture (RSBSA).
The list was forwarded to local government units (LGUs) for validation to verify the status of listed beneficiaries before being returned to BFAR.
The bureau then submitted the validated list to the Department of Agriculture for deduplication to determine whether beneficiaries had already received cash assistance under other DA programs.
Briones said individuals who had already received financial assistance from other DA interventions, such as those for rice or corn farmers, were excluded since the grants are covered under the same Presidential assistance program.
She said the financial assistance provides timely support to fisherfolk facing increasing fuel prices, unpredictable weather conditions, and rising costs of fishing operations.
“While the assistance is not intended as a long-term solution, it provides immediate relief that helps ease financial burdens, sustain fishing operations, and support the daily needs of fishing families,” Briones said.
Briones said the distribution of assistance in the region is nearly complete, with payouts continuing only in Sorsogon, where scheduled releases for the remaining qualified beneficiaries are still underway. (PNA)
