Alliance formation is considered to be one of the significant approaches in tackling community issues especially among local government units (LGUs). Around the world and in the country, it has been proven to be an effective strategy in delivering services to its wide-range of various stakeholders.

The Philippine Rural Development Project (PRDP) is set to implement the “Expansion and Development of Fish Landing” in Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro where tuna fish is a top commodity. This first infrastructure development (I-BUILD) subproject of the province, which costs about P20 million, plans to cater particularly the fishing community from its largest tuna-producing municipality.

In support of the said subproject, the MIMAROPA Regional Project Coordination Office (RPCO) and the PRDP South Luzon Project Support Office (PSO) initiated the formation of an alliance that will consolidate the stakeholders, LGUs, and other involved agencies in the agriculture and fisheries sector.

The said alliance intends to build partnerships that will have the capacity to address concerns on the environment and prioritize the development of the tuna industry. It will focus on strengthening sustainable coastal resource management and emphasize post-harvest and market support which are also the objectives of the PRDP subproject in Occidental Mindoro.

According to Elmer Velacruz of the Provincial Project Management and Implementing Unit (PPMIU), the fish landing will improve the socio-economic situation of the local fishing community in Sablayan and its neighboring municipalities. It is an establishment that will enable better marketing of fishery products that will lead to higher income of fishermen.

Furthermore, the subproject hopes to establish reliable data on the tuna industry which is currently lacking and is an issue in the academe and agri-fishery sector.

The convergence that will be founded through the alliance will form mechanisms for a more efficient program implementation of the subproject in Occidental Mindoro. This will involve the LGUs and several government and non-government agencies such as the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Science and Technology, Occidental Mindoro State College, and the World Wild Fund.

During the conducted consultation-meeting, the MIMAROPA RPCO and the South Luzon PSO through the I-PLAN component also encouraged the said organizations to utilize the Value Chain Analysis (VCA) and the Provincial Commodity Investment Plan (PCIP) on tuna.

The purpose of the VCA and PCIP as scientific tools is to determine possible interventions that is appropriate for a specific location. Through the PRDP, proponent groups can submit enterprise proposals which can add to the forms of livelihood of each community.

“We want more projects for the tuna industry in Occidental Mindoro. We want to identify where we can locate these critical investments,” said South Luzon’s I-PLAN Component Head Rey Lara.

The Occidental Mindoro PPMIU will be spearheading the proposed plan of activities necessary to form the alliance. This includes the formal presentation and signing of the memorandum of understanding by the member organizations, creation of the alliance sustainability plan, and mapping of critical investments to support the tuna productivity and resource sustainability. ### (Leira Vic Colongon, DA-PRDP RPCO 4B InfoACE Unit)