The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources in Western Visayas (BFAR-6) will release fuel subsidy to an initial 1,698 fisherfolk in the region this month in response to the increasing prices of fuel.

BFAR-6 Regional Director Remia Aparri, in a media forum on Monday, said the Department of Agriculture, through their office, targets to distribute fuel subsidy to almost 3,000 beneficiaries.

“It’s PHP3,000 per beneficiary, to be withdrawn from the fuel station being commissioned by BFAR. It will be directly withdrawn by the fisherfolk from the assigned gasoline station in their respective provinces,” she said.

The selection is being done in coordination with local government units, prioritizing the fifth and sixth class municipalities.

To qualify, beneficiaries have to be registered with the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture, Fisherfolk Registration and the National Program for Municipal Fishing Vessels and Gears Registration.

Aparri pointed out that before the crisis, BFAR-6 has been implementing a fuel subsidy program, which included the distribution of fuel vouchers and cards since 2022.

“We have a target of 16,000 and for this year, we have around 1,600 beneficiaries waiting for distribution. This intervention was before the geo-political crisis in the Middle East. We are continuing this program to support our fishers,” she said.

Meanwhile, she said they continue to monitor the prices of the top fishery commodities in the region, and so far, have not recorded any movement.

She said she’s personally monitoring the Estancia fish port, one of the bigger fish ports in Iloilo.

“So far, based on the monitoring of BFAR, the prices are still the same and we have sufficient supply,” she said. “Some commercial fishers have even stopped fishing due to the absorptive capacity of the market.” (PNA)