National tuna meet to tackle global issues

GENERAL SANTOS CITY — Bilateral fishing agreements with Pacific neighbors and the sustainable management of international tuna stocks will be among the issues to be discussed at the Third National Tuna Congress.

Slated Sept. 13-14 at the Family Country Hotel and Convention Center here in the country’s "Tuna Capital," the event will highlight once again this southern city’s position as the top producer of fresh and processed tuna products.

"We’ll be updating stakeholders on the development of the industry at all levels," says Domingo Teng, chairman of the Socksargen Federation of Fishing Associations and Allied Industries (SFFAAI), the event’s organizer.

"There will be a briefing on the status of bilateral agreements with neighboring Pacific nations, as well as presentations on marketing strategies and business partnerships with foreign investors," he added.

Teng said more than 500 participants are expected to attend, including delegations from Indonesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea and Japan. The congress will also focus on the regional management of resources leading to the industry’s sustainable development.

Fishing is a major industry in the Philippines, contributing about four percent of the country’s gross national product (GNP). The country produces an average of over 2.4 million tons of fish annually.

General Santos City contributes an average of over 1,000 metric tons of fish daily and is currently the premier producer of high-value tuna. Major tuna canneries and fish processors in the city provide a livelihood to more than 50,000 workers.

Industry analysts say the country’s industrial tuna fishing sector, allied with its canning and processing sectors, places the Philippines among the world’s top three tuna producers.

"In previous years, the Tuna Congress led to the creation of the National Tuna Council and the Confederation of Philippine Tuna Associations," said Rene Subido, deputy chief of party of the USAID-funded Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) program which assists the industry.

The confederation hosted two international meetings which led to the formation with other countries of the World Tuna Purse Seine Organization, an indication of an increasingly unified international tuna industry, Subido says.

Plenary sessions on key industry issues, including the status of the Pacific tuna stocks, regional management of tuna products, and government actions to resolve problems in tuna handline fishery, will be conducted during the two-day Tuna Congress. The event will also feature an exhibit of the latest technologies, fishery products and services. — GEM program