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WHILE
the Asian Development Bank (ADB) is credited for
boosting the country’s economy through loans it has
extended since the 1960s, it is also to be blamed for
the massive destruction of mangrove forests not only in
the Philippines but also in other Southeast Asian
countries as well.
Members
of the Kilusang Mangingisda (KM), an alliance of 14
national fisherfolk federations, said the ADB, as well
as other international finance institutions, should be
held accountable for promoting environmentally
destructive aquaculture in the Philippines, Indonesia
and other Southeast Asian countries from the 1970s to
the 1990s.
Bonifacio Federizo, KM chairman, said around 100 members
of KM stormed the ADB building on Tuesday last week in
Ortigas, Pasig City, to demand that it channel its funds
to projects that will restore marine life through
massive reforestation of mangrove areas.
The
group said the ADB offered billions of dollars in loans
and grants to increase fisheries production and trade in
Asia and worldwide, especially of high-value species
like tuna and shrimp, which resulted in the expansion of
“intensive” aquaculture, which eventually led to a
massive loss of mangrove areas that ultimately led to
dwindling fishery stocks and to the present deficit in
the supply of fish in the country.
“Huge
amounts were spent to develop large aquaculture
complexes, build bigger and more efficient fish ports,
as well as postharvest-processing facilities since the
’70s. Between 1985 and 1989, all forms of external
assistance to the fisheries and the aquaculture sectors
of developing countries averaged $500 million a year,”
explained Federizo, citing data from the Food and
Aquaculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
“From
1989 to 1995, the ADB and the World Bank were the prime
supporters of aquaculture in Asia, accounting for 69
percent of total foreign funding and supported 40
percent of the total projects. Overall, from 1974 to
1996, aquaculture-loan commitments worldwide had reached
a total of $1.3 billion. The World Bank provided 77
percent of this amount, followed by the Asian
Development Bank at 13 percent. The ADB loans were given
exclusively to Southeast Asian nations, including the
Philippines and Indonesia,” he further explained.
KM
blamed this huge support for creating an environmental
catastrophe in the massive destruction of mangrove areas
in the region. “The ADB and World Bank funds fueled the
expansion of intensive aquaculture in Southeast Asia,
which converted most mangrove areas for the large-scale
production of shrimp and other species for both export
and major domestic markets,” Federizo noted.
“The
total area of mangroves lost is mind-boggling. In
Thailand, 203,765 hectares representing 55 percent of
total mangrove area were lost. In Vietnam, only 60,000
ha of an original 200,000 ha in the Mekong Delta remain.
In the Philippines, only 117,000 ha remain out of
500,000 ha of mangroves in the 1920s. Mangrove
conversion to fishponds is the main reason for this huge
loss,” Federizo pointed out.
Federizo
said the loss of mangroves “consequently led to a
decline in wild-fish stocks in coastal areas and
ultimately to the present deficit in food fish, which is
estimated to average 403,000 tons yearly.”
KM
argues the ADB has not owned up to its responsibility
and that, in fact, aquaculture programs are now its
priority over capture-fisheries programs since it came
up with a 1997 assessment that claimed its
capture-fisheries programs were a failure.
“We,
therefore, hold [the] ADB accountable for its role in
causing large-scale damage and destruction of the
coastal areas in the country and in Southeast Asia. We
demand that it stop financing further intensive
aquaculture expansion or maintenance,” Federizo said.
“Only a
few wealthy companies see any profits in intensive
aquaculture. On the other hand, millions of people in
coastal communities, once protected by mangroves and
other natural coastal barriers, now are left vulnerable
to natural disasters,” he added. |
