U.S. envoy visits Bohol, pushes for marine conservation

TAGBILARAN CITY, Philippines - U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Harry K. Thomas visited Bohol the other day urging the people to help in the preservation of the Philippines' natural resources and the environment, especially marine life.

Thomas, while meeting with local government officials, relayed his advocacy to public school pupils of Barangay Taloto of this capital city by reading to them a story about fish in Mabaw Reef.

Mabaw Reef, offshore of this city, is a marine protected area (MPA) where some of the children's parents have been depending on their livelihood in fishing.

"The best way to ensure the success of our initiatives is to educate the younger generation about their responsibility to the environment as they will soon be the caretakers of the country's rich resources," Thomas said.

The school children also went on to frolic with the three mascots that represented the flagship fish species of Bohol towns.

The mascots also represented the Pride Campaign that is the signature program of Resource Assistance for Rural Environment (RARE) designed to inspire people to take pride in the species and habitats that make their communities unique.

Twenty-five of the country's 850 coastal towns have collaborated with RARE in "focusing primarily on building community support and infrastructure for fishery no-take zones and local enforcement," the RARE statement said.

It added: "USAID supports RARE's program on Coastal Climate Change Adaptation: MPAs, which aims to strengthen MPAs as a platform for building community, ecological and social resilience among coastal towns in the Philippines. The four-year program seeks to improve municipal MPA networks, covering 25 focal MPAs that total over 1,500 hectares."

The RARE's recipients of the towns of Ubay, Inabanga and this city, represented by Mayors Josephine Socorro Jumamoy of Inabanga town and Geesnell "Baba" Yap of this capital city, have "committed to protect and conserve the marine and coastal environment, be aware of the environmental issues, promote sustainable fishing for the benefit of the next generation and fellow citizens."

Thomas, who was with USAID mission director Gloria Steele, was welcomed by the two mayors, Gov. Edgar Chatto, Vice Gov. Concepcion Lim, provincial administrator Alfonso Damalerio II, Taloto Barangay Chairman Faro Cabalit and other sector leaders.

Bohol has been a recipient of a multiple assistance from the USAID, which helped the transformation of the province, since 1991, with projects such as the Local Development Assistance Program and the Governance and Local Democracy (GOLD) project in 1996. Under the GOLD, the province was able to enact the Bohol Environment Code of 1998, the first environment law by any LGU in the country.

USAID's current environmental project, Coastal Climate Change Adaptation, in partnership with RARE, strengthens the MPAs and build community resilience against climate chage.

Steele said, "the partnership we (U.S.) built with the people of Bohol is instrumental as we move towards our vision of putting the Philippines on accelerated growth trajectory ... that benefits all Filipinos." (FREEMAN)