Small-Scale Fisheries of Davao Gulf and Impacts of the Closed Fishing Season Implementation

The Davao Gulf in the Philippines has diverse marine resources on which the coastal fishing communities crucially depend for their food and livelihood. Recent studies have shown that resource depletion in the country’s fishing grounds is due to overfishing and destruction of the aquatic environment. In 2014, a joint administrative order by the Department of Interior and Local Government and the Department of Agriculture was implemented in the Davao Gulf to establish a three-month closed fishing season to reduce the annual fishing effort by 20 percent. This study aimed to validate the effectiveness of the closed season fishing policy; identify the factors that influenced the positive response in implementing the fishing policy; understand how it influenced the fishing strategies, movement patterns, and effort allocation of small-scale fishers; and determine the possible impacts of the policy on main commercial markets. The results of the study showed that the unabated capture of wild fish can impact the marine ecosystem if not allowed to replenish itself. Recent advancements in fishing technology using GPS and sonars, coupled with increasing fish demands from a fast-growing population, have resulted in widespread depletion of global fish stocks. Other findings from this study revealed the cooperation of fishers and fishing communities toward its implementation and provided evidence for economic motivation, informed communication, better organization, and perceived negative consequences of violations such as the impounding of fishing gear and boats and the scale of operation promoted by the government.