USAID taps internet to help PH fishermen during pandemic

MANILA, Philippines—The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has launched an online platform to help FIlipino fishermen sell goods during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The “Fish Tiangge” is an online marketplace that can connect 6,000 fishermen with buyers from over 300,000 households in South Negros, Visayan Sea in the Visayas region and the Calamianes Group of Islands in Palawan—the three most important areas for Philippine biodiversity, according to the US Embassy in Manila.

The Silliman University in Dumaguete City first launched the project in early April. It will also monitor Fish Tiangge to ensure that no fish caught by illegal means are sold and the catch is from fishermen registered in their communities.

“By connecting fishers and consumers online, the US government is helping to protect fisherfolk income and prevent a food crisis, while ensuring that conservation measures are not compromised in areas that are hard-hit by COVID-19,” said US Ambassador Sung Kim.

Fish Tiangge is part of the USAID’s Fish Right program, a five-year partnership between the US and Philippine governments to address biodiversity threats, improve marine ecosystem governance, and increase fish population in South Negros, the Calamianes Island Group and Visayan Sea.

Wet market shopping had been difficult amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as people are under stay-at-home orders to prevent the transmission of SARS Cov2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Edited by TSB