Interview with Leyte MPDO
Added to website: 31 May 2005
On the 27th of May, four Marine Protected Areas were launched simultaneously in Tangka-an, Santa Sofia, Buenavista and Lungsoda-an Barangays of the Padre Burgos Municipality, Philippines. Attended by the Provincial Governor of Southern Leyte, Hon. Rosette Y. Lerias, the opening was an outstanding success. Encouraging speeches were made by the Mayor of Padre Burgos, as well as by representatives of the fisherfolks, the LGUs and by the CCC Project Scientist. Everyone got a chance to visit the MPAs and see firsthand how the effort put in by the community has paid off. In the coming years, the MPAs are hoped to encourage the conservation and potentially even the regeneration of the local fish stocks, and to give the fisherfolk the chance to continue their livelihoods in a sustainable fashion. It must be borne in mind, however, that the installation of the marker buoys is not the end of the MPA process, but is really just the beginning.
CCC Project Scientist, Jan van Bochove, interviews Emmanuel Gulay, Municipal Planning and Development Officer (MPDO) of Padre Burgos Municipality, for his thoughts on the exciting developments:
Jan van Bochove: Sir Gulay, how long have you been the MPDO of Padre Burgos?
Emmanuel Gulay: I came to work for the MPDO in 1999, so for 6 years.
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Jan van Bochove: How long have you been working together with Coral Cay to establish Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the region?
Emmanuel Gulay: We have wanted to install MPAs in Padre Burgos ever since we went to Apo Island (a renowned community based MPA, off the nearby island of Negros) with your old Project Scientist to look how things are done over there. This was about one year ago.
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Jan van Bochove: Was it difficult to convince the fishermen that the MPAs would be of a benefit to them?
Emmanuel Gulay: Definitely not! The people of Padre Burgos are very open-minded and easily understood the benefits of installing an MPA in their Barangay (town).
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Jan van Bochove: What was your strategy/approach in convincing them that the MPAs could help consolidate and maybe even increase the dwindling fish stocks?
Emmanuel Gulay: We used an approach that involved maximum participation of the community. We let the people speak in making the decision as to where the MPAs should be placed. They were the ones that ultimately decided on the location within the respective Barangays. By giving them the freedom to choose, they also felt more involved and it was easy to convince them that fishery MPAs do help by showing the example of Apo Island.
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Jan van Bochove: Apo Island has been a great success. Do you believe that the MPAs of Buenavista, Tangka-an, Santa Sofia and Lungsoda-an will be as successful or even more successful over the next 10 years?
Emmanuel Gulay: Yes, I am optimistic. From the initial proposal to the official instalment, there have been no negative reactions from anyone. This is why I believe the success story of Apo Island can be repeated here in Padre Burgos.
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Jan van Bochove: The Barangays will be asking a small charge to tourists who want to dive within the boundaries. How will this money be used?
Emmanuel Gulay: The money will be used for the maintenance and protection of the MPAs. By this, I mean the costs of replacing buoys, repairing the guardhouse and so on.
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Jan van Bochove: The corals in Sogod Bay and especially here in Burgos may well be some of the most diverse and unspoiled on the planet. Do you think the fisher folk realise what a great treasure lies beneath their waters? Has this knowledge strengthened their determination to protect the corals?
Emmanuel Gulay: At present, the knowledge of the fishermen about the coral reefs and their importance to Padre Burgos is not complete, but it is growing. The fishermen are receiving more education and training to increase their knowledge and awareness of the importance of protecting the marine resources here.
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Jan van Bochove: Now that the MPAs have been officially opened and the buoys are in place, what should be the next step in order to keep the community aware and interested?
Emmanuel Gulay: Again, I believe the key to the success of the MPAs here is community education throughout the coming years so that people do not lose interest and forget about the importance of the MPAs.
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Jan van Bochove: Every MPA will have its own guard from the community to make sure that no fishing boats are entering the area. Should this be one of the fishermen?
Emmanuel Gulay: Yes, it should be someone from the fishermen. We have asked the National Government of the Philippines to help build the guardhouses. Hopefully the Countryside Development Fund will cover the expenses.
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Jan van Bochove: Coral Cay would like to thank you for all the help you have given us and we hope that we can keep working together in the same manner so that the MPAs may help to secure the future of the fisher folk and their children!
