Resiliency of Fisherfolks on Safety Measures in the Municipality of Balatan, Camarines Sur Philippines

The promotion of sustainable shipping and sustainable maritime development is one of the major priorities of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in the coming years.1 Safety measures for fisherfolk are essential prior to and during fishing to prevent any accident or emergency at sea. Fisherfolk and fishing boat owners should follow government rules and regulations such as BFAR Republic Act No. 8550, also known as “The Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998†under Section 1, which is an act providing for the development, management, and conservation of the fisheries and aquatic resources, integrating all laws pertinent thereto, and other purposes.2 One way to improve safety measures for small fisherfolk is to develop regulations to be followed by all fishing boats before and after fishing. Safety of life at sea (SOLAS) is equally important among fisherfolk. The lives of fishermen are at stake every time a typhoon occurs. Their primary source of living is halted due to inclement weather. Especially when typhoons Rolly and Ulysses hit the Philippines in 2020, leaving at least 20 people dead and its wake displacing 89,000 citizens in Albay and affecting almost two million people across 26 provinces in the island of Luzon, including Camarines Sur. The Bicol Region bore the brunt of the typhoon’s violent winds and torrential rains, blowing away roofs, toppling structures, and causing severe flooding and landslides, which impacted the fishermen of Balatan, Camarines Sur (Balaan, 2021)3. It is at this point that the researchers decided to study the resiliency level of the fisherfolk in Barangay Duran and Coguit, Balatan, Camarines Sur, the place where the College of Maritime Department of the University of Saint Anthony, Iriga City, Philippines, is having their extension service. With the eagerness of the researchers to help the constituents, especially the fishermen in the said barangays, the group decided to dig into the resiliency level of fishermen on safety measures at sea to determine the kind of service that the department will be extending in the municipality.