Thursday, July 27, 2006
High-value fish hatchery to be set up in Tawi-Tawi
THE Provincial Government of Tawi-Tawi is making a final call to all companies interested in leasing and operating a P16 million high-value multi-species hatchery to be constructed in Luuk Pandan, Bongao.
Tawi-Tawi Provincial Planning and Development Officer (PPDO) Nestor Delasas indicated that the Office of the Provincial Governor is preparing the terms of reference for the private operator.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (Bfar), which is providing most of the funds to build the hatchery, is finalizing the selection criteria.
The Bfar has allocated P10 million for a hatchery that will produce juveniles of high-value species of finfish (such as humpback grouper), tropical abalone (Haliotis sp.), and sea cucumber (Holothuria scabra).
The government agency has earmarked an additional P5 million to develop a 200-hectare Mariculture Park in a nearby municipality.
The Bfar budget is being augmented by an additional P6 million from the Western Mindanao Community Initiatives Project (WMCIP), a DAR-implemented project funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad).
According to USAid's Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) Program, one of the partners in the hatchery project, eleven private sector firms have confirmed their interest and are at varying stages of due diligence.
"We are still looking for more potential operators and investors," Delasas said, adding that, "companies that recognize the business viability of the project, have an appreciation for the enormous positive impact the hatchery will have on the lives of the people of Tawi-Tawi, and who are not discouraged by the false impressions of our beautiful province."
The hatchery has been designed to produce 400,000 fingerlings of high-value finfish and at least 1.6 million tropical abalonne spats annually, to meet the requirements of high-value fish-cage farmers in Tawi-Tawi and neighboring provinces.
The hatchery is a focal project that has been designed to improve Tawi-Tawi's economy through an export-driven, environmentally sustainable mariculture industry.
Interested companies submit their letters of interest to the Bfar Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture Division (Ifad) at the PCA Compound, Diliman, Quezon City.
They may also contact the GEM Sustainable Aquaculture and Fisheries Efforts (Safe) Division 1 Ladislawa Building, Ladislawa Avenue, Buhangin, Davao City, Tel. No. (082)225-1569, local 162, Fax No. (082)225-1479, or by email at: gem_safe@mindanao.org.
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (July 27, 2006 issue)
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