DAVAO CITY—The autonomous region for Filipino Muslims in the South would stand to benefit most from the visit of seaweeds industry leaders to the facilities in Sabah, Malaysia, this week.

The government’s socioeconomic planning unit in Mindanao, the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo), made this assertion saying that the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) “continues to be the top seaweeds-producing region in the country.”

In 2003, the ARMM generated about $60.27 million in seaweed exports. This amount was 70 percent of the entire seaweeds export of Mindanao.

The total seaweeds output of Mindanao made up 60 percent of the total seaweeds production in the country in 2003. This crop also accounted for most of the country’s total aquaculture output.

The export of seaweeds and their byproducts were among the country’s top dollar-earner. In 2003, the crop generated $143.5 million for the country, which increased further by 10 percent the following year with $158 million.

The mission to Sabah was intended “to bolster the performance of the country’s seaweeds industry” with knowledge that would be culled from the visit to the seaweed processing plants and some growing areas in Sabah and meeting with their counterpart company officials.

The group was composed of public and private fishery officials from Mindanao and Palawan and would stay for a tour and meeting with their counterparts in this province on February 12-17.

The group was expected to talk with officials of the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-Facilitation Center (BIMP-FC) regarding the conduct of the proposed and first BIMP-EAGA Seaweed Conference this year.

The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-ARMM Regional director Keise Usman and his deputy, Janice Musali, headed the mission and would provide the mission with technical assistance during the tour.

“The seaweeds industry is among the most important industries that we have in the region both in terms of its economic and social impact,” Usman said. He said he hoped that their travel would help improve seaweeds farming in the region.

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DAVAO CITY—The autonomous region for Filipino Muslims in the South would stand to benefit most from the visit of seaweeds industry leaders to the facilities in Sabah, Malaysia, this week.