Chinese Help Sought For Zamboanga And Davoa Tuna Portsff

The Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA) is proposing for the financing of a study on the rehabilitation of the country’s seven fish ports as one of the agenda during Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to the country in April. Among the seven ports are the tuna ports Zamboanga and Davao.

China National Construction Agriculture Machineries Import Export Corp. has already funded some $40 million rehabilitation of the General Santos Fish Port, the country’s major tuna port.

Petronilo B. Buendia, PFDA executive director, said government rests its hope on China’s possible financing of the fish ports’ repair as the rehabilitation of the old fish ports, now aged 20 to 30 years, have been waiting for financing for several years now.

The seven fish ports are found in Navotas, the largest fish port supplying seafoods in Metro Manila and established in 1977, Zamboanga, Davao, Iloilo, Sual in Pangasinan, Camaligan in Camarines Sur, and Dalahican in Lucena.

Government operates these fish ports while it also coordinates with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources’ for their repair’s financing proposal.

“We are meeting with a Chinese delegation for our proposal for new fisheries projects. We’re proposing for the financing of a study on the scope of rehabilitation because unless we do this, we won’t know the extent of the works,” he said in an interview. Having been left without rehabilitation, the fish ports’ operations have deteriorated and their operating costs are higher than if they are rehabilitated.

“The thrust is to upgrade which means we’re going to use efficient equipment and machineries. We will be able to pass on to our clients the savings from efficiency in their operations,” he said.

PFDA, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), has earlier been asking Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) to finance the repair works of the fish ports most of which Japan itself constructed way back in the 1970s or the 1980s. The construction was financed also by JBIC which was once the Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund (OECF).