Eleven statistical researchers underwent training recently at the Philippine Statistics Authority in preparation for the conduct of the 1st Quarter Commercial and Municipal Fisheries Survey in Catanduanes.
Hired to enumerate data from 12 fish landing centers in the province, the researchers completed the 3rd level training conducted by Statistical Analyst Ma. Hazel B. Molod at the Catanduanes Provincial Statistical Office training room last Jan. 13, 2025
The fisheries statistics primarily serve as input to the compilation of the performance of agriculture and national accounts, with the data sets also used for policy making and program implementation on fisheries.
The Quarterly Commercial and Municipal Fisheries Survey serves as the activity that gathers information on volume and value of species unloaded in the commercial and municipal landing centers.
Information on gears used, fishing effort, fishing ground, income and wage are also obtained through the survey.
According to the PSA, municipal fisheries made the largest contribution to the overall fishery volume and value of production from 2018 to 2023. However, starting in 2020, the total volume and value of production for commercial, marine municipal, inland and aquaculture declined in 2020 and preceding years.
From 281.17 metric tons valued at P38 million in 2022, the commercial fishing industry hauled in 62 percent less in 2023 with just 106.18 metric tons valued at P14 million.
As for municipal fisheries, a similar decline in production was noted beginning in 2021 when it fell by 38 percent to 2,308 MT before rebounding slightly to 2,148 MT in 2023.
Aquaculture production likewise decreased significantly in 2023 to 13 MT, a steep fall from the 47 MT of the previous year.
In 2023, the top fish species caught by local fishermen were bangkulis (yellowfin tuna), 225 metric tons; salay-salay (crevalle), 188 MT; tulingan (frigate tuna), 170 MT; and gulyasan (skipjack tuna), 112 MT.
The success of the fishery survey depends highly on the quality of data that will be collected, the PSA said, as it assured respondents that all information collected from them shall be kept strictly confidential.
Section 26 of Republic Act 10625 stipulated that individual data furnished by the respondent to statistical inquiries, surveys, and censuses of the PSA shall be considered privileged information and such shall be inadmissible as evidence in any proceeding.
The PSA may release data gathered from surveys and censuses only in the form of summaries or statistical tables, in which no reference to an individual, corporation, association, partnership, institution, or business enterprise shall appear.