Fish stocks across the Philippines are shrinking as illegal fishing and decades of overexploitation are putting mounting pressure on the country’s marine resources.
A new analysis conducted by ocean advocacy nonprofit Oceana highlights that fish production from both commercial and municipal sectors in the Philippines has steadily declined since peaking in 2010.
Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Oceana reported that catch volumes of Bali sardinella dropped 24.3 percent to around 253,000 metric tons (MT) in 2024 from over 334,000 MT in 2010. Frigate tuna tumbled by 62 percent from its 2004 peak, while yellowfin tuna fell 46 percent from 2008 levels. Round scad – a crucial source of protein for many low-income families in the Southeast Asian nation – also saw a 46 percent decrease last year compared to 2007 peak numbers.
The sharp drops stem from a combination of overfishing, degraded marine habitats, and rampant illegal fishing, particularly the repeated intrusion of commercial vessels into nearshore waters, according to Oceana. Legal commercial fishing in the Philippines involves vessels operating 15 kilometers or more offshore, while municipal fisheries comprise smaller boats or fishers casting from the shore or placing nets within coastal waters, according to the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center.
Referencing the Philippines’ National Stock Assessment Program, Oceana said that 87 percent of the country’s marine fish stocks were already classified as overfished as early as 2017, and according to self-assessment data from coastal local government units (LGUs), illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in municipal waters was estimated at 107,176 MT annually in both 2022 and 2023.
This translates to a potential annual income loss of around PHP 5.4 billion (USD 92.9 million, EUR 81.3 million) for the country’s 2.3 million registered municipal fishers. Commercial fishing vessels intruding into municipal waters accounted for 54 percent of this estimated loss, the Philippine IUU Fishing Assessment Report 2023 said.
To better monitor illegal fishing activity, Oceana has partnered with the League of Municipalities of the Philippines to launch an online platform called Karagatan Patrol that uses satellite-based VIIRS technology to detect commercial fishing vessels operating illegally within the 15-kilometer boundary of municipal waters.
Data from the platform showed that suspected illegal fishing activity in the Philippines has risen steadily in recent years, with VIIRS detections increasing 9.6 percent to 28,822 in 2023 from 26,295 in 2022 and growing again in 2024 by 10.5 percent to 31,843.
In theory, vessel identities can be verified through tracking systems installed by the nation’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) and cross-checked against the bureau’s vessel registries. However, data from these vessel-monitoring measures (VMM) are not publicly available.
“Despite the high installation rate of VMM for commercial fishing vessels at 90 percent, there are also reports of tampering or deliberately turning off to avoid detection, particularly if operating illegally,” Oceana Communications Manager Joyce Sierra told SeafoodSource. “Enforcement is further weakened by low criminal prosecution rates, with BFAR often imposing administrative penalties only. Additionally, economic pressures, such as declining fisheries production and rising fuel costs continue to drive some operators to engage in illegal activities to remain profitable.”
Some foreign vessels have also been reported operating in Philippine waters, particularly in contested zones such as the West Philippine Sea and the Luzon Strait.
While international maritime regulations require these ships to use automatic identification systems (AIS) for tracking, some similarly disable their AIS to avoid detection, making it difficult to verify their presence without other forms of surveillance, Sierra told SeafoodSource.
Consequently, small-scale fishers, who depend on municipal waters, are increasingly displaced by commercial vessels and, with the added effects of overfishing, often return with little to no catch. This loss of access undermines their livelihoods, widens socioeconomic disparities, and jeopardizes national food security goals, Oceana said, adding that the use of destructive fishing practices further degrades marine habitats, threatening long-term fish stock recovery.
In an attempt to address domestic fish shortages, the Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) has issued import permits for several mackerel and scad species in recent years, which are staple sources of protein for many Filipino households.
Sierra said that, while important, imports offer only temporary relief for consumers. She stressed that import policies should align with long-term sustainability goals rather than serve as a substitute for rebuilding depleted fish stocks.
“Advocates and local officials are calling for a multi-pronged approach to address the crisis. This includes full implementation of VMM, stricter enforcement of existing laws, and protection of marine habitats within municipal waters,” Oceana said.
In a statement on 29 July, Oceana Acting Vice President Rose-Liza Eisma-Osorio directly urged the Philippine government to take decisive action to protect the 15-kilometer municipal waters from commercial fishing and uphold subsistence fishers’ preferential rights enshrined in the country’s constitution.
