MAFAR BOOST AWARENESS CAMPAIGN ON LARGE MARINE MAMMALS

Fisherfolk, Bantay Dagat Members, Municipal/ Barangay Local Government Unit of Sulu trained in an awareness campaign on the management of large marine mammals on August 22-26.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, through its Fisheries Resource Management Division (FRMD), led the activity in the municipalities of Patikul and Hadji Panglima Tahil, Sulu.

The activity aimed to provide awareness of the management and conservation of large marine vertebrates and their ecological importance to coastal communities and local Government Units (LGUs).

Marine mammals play an important role in the marine environment, but these species have already faced several threats that have resulted in strandings. The engagement of fishing communities in managing marine vertebrates is important to raise awareness on the proper response in case marine mammals are stranded.

During the activity, a series of lectures were given by the provincial and regional Fisheries staff, and the topics discussed were the Marine Ecosystem Structure and Functions, Importance and Threats, Overview and Biology of Marine Mammals, legal framework for marine mammals conservation, understanding stranding and why save stranded cetacean and Simulation on how to respond to stranded mammals.

Participants actively partook in the activity and extended their gratitude to the ministry for the knowledge and learnings they gained in the lectures and said, “Saving stranding marine mammals is a symbol of our effort in protecting our ocean.”