Easygrants ID: 49487 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation NFWF Project ID: 0302.15.049487 Coral Reef Conservation Fund 2015 - Submit Final Programmatic Report (New Metrics) Grantee Organization: Marine Environment and Resources Foundation, Inc. Project Title: Philippines In-Country Coordination Services Project Period 3/01/2016-6/30/2016 Project Location Description (from Proposal) Project Summary (from Proposal) The project will primarily work with national government agencies based in the Philippines, but will involved all other regional and field offices around the country. Support in-country coordination for capacity building initiatives in the Philippines relating to MPA management, fisheries management, and IUU Fishing. The Marine Environment and Resources Foundation, Inc. (MERF), through a sub-contract, will serve as a local point of contact to liaise with NOAA, USAID, national agencies and other relevant NGOs to support local and national marine and coastal conservation projects in the Philippines. Project will enable MERF, through sub-contracting, to provide in-country coordination services to the partnership among NOAA, USAID and their Philippine partner agencies. Summary of Accomplishments For the grant period, the in-country services for the NOAA-USAID partnerships with Philippines Department of Agriculture -Bureau of Fisheries (BFAR) and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) supported a total of 5 trainings and 3 outreaches and reaching a total of 261 people. For DENR-BMB, the in-country services provided assistance in the conduct of 1 training for 38 NIPAS Management Staff and DENR Regional Staff on Marine Ecosystems and Processes. The sixday intensive hands-on training workshop focused on the marine ecosystems and ocean processes to build the participants capacities in managing their NIPAS MPAs effectively. Participants learned, through a mixture of interactive lectures, exercises and fieldwork, the five modules on oceanographic processes and environments, biology of marine fish, ecology on marine invertebrates, watersheds, coastal habitats and connectivity, and monitoring considerations for MPAs. Ten mentors from DENR were also trained to eventually roll-out the training program in the Philippines for sustainability. This follows the DENR Multi-Year Capacity Building Framework for NIPAS Managers and Staff. For DA-BFAR, the in-country coordination services supported 1 training on the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) night light boat detection for BFAR enforcement staff as part of strengthening BFAR s measures against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, 2 outreaches to the local government units and to the general public on the VIIRS and 3 back-to-back-toback training on the Ecosystems Approach to Fisheries Management to BFAR provincial fisheries officers. A 2-day workshop was conducted for 54 Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Central and Regional Offices staff to learn more about the VIIRS night light boat detection and its uses for fishery closures, marine protected areas, municipal waters, exclusive economic zones transgressions, among others. Under this government-to-government partnership among the three agencies, three alert services were set up for the seasonal fishery closures in Zamboanga, Palawan and the Visayan Sea. Daily alerts are received by BFAR from NOAA on detected boats within the delineated closure areas that BFAR uses for their regulatory and enforcement work. Alert services are also set up for the 10.1 and 15 kilometer stretch from the coastlines to detect boats using night lights that encroach on municipal waters. Through the workshop, NOAA trained 54 BFAR staff on how the VIIRS products are developed and how these can be used to protect and conserve fishery resources using information available daily as well as aggregated annual summaries of detections. To disseminate the use of this technology for addressing IUU fishing, an information session was also held for select local government units with operational enforcement teams and a public lecture for the stakeholders in general was also conducted. These were attended by 25 participants from 15 local government units and 59 participants, respectively. The in-country coordination services also facilitated the conducted of NOAA s Earth Observation Group, Dr. Christopher Elvidge, in field data collection in four fishing ports on the night lights being used in the country. The in-country coordination services also supported the three Essential EAFM training workshops for 85 BFAR Provincial Fisheries Officers and Staff (PFO), using customized modules on EAFM. For
these three trainings for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao from April 11 through 29, BFAR PFOs were trained on the whys and what of EAFM, principles, the planning processes, developing the fisheries management areas, identifying issues, vision, goals, objectives and management actions, leading to a sample EAFM plan for an appropriate fisheries management area. These capacity-building activities were meant to enhance the knowledge and skills of PFOs and also to equip them to provide assistance to local government units as well as other stakeholders. The Philippine Fisheries Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 10654, mandates the EAFM as an approach to sustainably managing fisheries and marine resources. In June 2016, the in-country coordination services also provided support to the DENR-BMB Month of the Ocean activity on the Hands-on-ARMS or (Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures) outreach to about 100 school children in Mabini, Batangas. One set of ARMS previously deployed in the Verde Island Passage under the government-to-government partnership was retrieved for information and education purposes. Using ARMS and crypto-biota, the outreach is meant to spread awareness on marine biodiversity and raise up local champions among the comm Lessons Learned For this grant, some of the lessons learned are as follows: a) In providing technical assistance and support to local partners, it is important that the needs of the local partners must be the primary consideration and rationale for such assistance. It is thus important to understand well the bigger context within which such partnership is carried out. Such responsiveness allows for a smooth implementation of government-to-government partnerships and yield concrete results and benefits to local partners. b) In doing partnership work, it is important to build trust and open avenues of communications at all times. This allows for a harmonious working relationship and an optimal result of the partnership. c) Customized training materials are better suited and more effective, rather than generic training materials. Local partners learn more effectively and readily see the potential application of their learning from the training to benefit the natural resources that they are managing.
Activities and Outcomes Funding Strategy Activity / Outcome Required Description Capacity, Outreach, Incentives Coral - Outreach/ Education/ Technical Assistance - # people reached Recommended Enter the number of people reached by outreach, training, or technical assistance activities # people reached - Current 30 # people reached - Grant Completion 0 Notes OBJECTIVES and OUTCOMES This grant will support PTFCF s engagement in the implementation of capacity building for MPA management, technical assistance for fisheries management, and capacity building for IUU Fishing. The coordinators will liaise among project partners including NOAA, USAID, and national agencies in the Philippines, provide regular communication to the partnership on relevant developments and issues within country, network with implementing partners and relevant NGOs, act as local Points of Contact in the Philippines, maintain regular access and communication with government officials working with the USG, and assist in tracking and reporting of activities. Objective 1: Increase the Philippines Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) capacity to manage their marine protected areas. Output: For the grant period, 1 training on MPA management subject matter for the DENR, with approximately 20 people per training in partnership with NOAA, USAID, and in-country partners. Outcome: DENR will provide better management of their MPAs, resulting in a higher diversity and density of marine resources. Objective 2: Increase the Philippine governments (GPh) ability and capacity to combat wildlife trafficking and address IUU fishing in Philippines jurisdiction. Output: For the grant period, 1 workshop on methods to combat wildlife trafficking or on addressing IUU Fishing, including Port State measures, and other relevant fisheries enforcement practices. Each training will have approximately 15 participants. Outcome: GPh will be able to better enforce and develop fisheries regulations and reduce current illegal fishing and wildlife trafficking efforts in the Philippines. TASKS The primary responsibilities for this grant will be focused on the successful implementation of the partnership s joint workplan to build capacity and technical expertise across the 2 objectives mentioned above. Specific tasks will include: Coordination PTFCF will provide a contact point for NOAA in the Philippines for national agencies, NGOs, and implementing partners. Liaise between PTFCF, NOAA, USAID-Philippines, and Philippines
government agencies. Provide regular communication to NOAA team of relevant development and issues within country. Network with implementing partners and relevant NGOs Act as local contact point for communication with NOAA Maintain regular access and communication with Philippines government officials working with the USG Logistical Support PTFCF will provide logistical support for all partnership activities under the joint workplan objectives listed above. These activities include capacity building and technical assistance efforts requiring logistical support, including: Schedule trainings and meetings Secure venues for training, food, supplies and IT products needed for meetings and trainings Recruitment and registration of participants Translation, including both written materials and oral presentation Lead local logistics necessary for technical assistance work, as needed (including permitting, ship time, transportation of samples and materials, etc) Tracking & Reporting PTFCF will assist in the overall tracking of country-specific set of goals, objectives, and deliverables, as directed by the partnership. Provide tracking of progress of deliverables during year to be reported to major funders Track and report goals and targets identified required by CTI partnership workplan activities Track & report targets advanced at each partnership activity, input performance metrics into USAID TRAINet. Produce written report of each partnership activity following reporting format set by funding agencies Material Development PTFCF will provide support for the partnership by researching, developing, and/or translating materials that will assist technical leads and staff in meeting work plan deliverables. Assist in the development of training material Adapting materials for applicability and use within Philippines Research information needed to develop and adapt materials Summarize strategic organizational documents Coordinate with KKP training centers and programs to ensure training materials meet local needs Oversee process of submitting and approving new training competencies
Final Programmatic Report Narrative Instructions: Save this document on your computer and complete the narrative in the format provided. The final narrative should not exceed ten (10) pages; do not delete the text provided below. Once complete, upload this document into the online final programmatic report task as instructed. Please note that this narrative will be made available on NFWF s Grants Library and therefore should provide brief context for the need of your project and should not contain unexplained terms or acronyms. 1. Summary of Accomplishments In four to five sentences, provide a brief summary of the project s key accomplishments and outcomes that were observed or measured. This can be duplicative to the summary provided in the reporting field or you can provide more detail here. For the grant period, the in- country services for the NOAA- USAID partnerships with Philippines Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Fisheries (BFAR) and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) coordinated a total of 5 trainings and 3 outreaches. These national trainings were on Marine Ecosystems and Processes for Marine Protected Area Managers, on Ecosystems Approach to Fisheries Management for Provincial Fisheries Officers for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao Clusters and on Night Light Boat Detection. Two outreaches were on the night light boat detection while the other one was one on marine biodiversity. All planned activities were successfully coordinated through the in- country services, reaching a total of 261 people. 2. Project Activities & Outcomes Activities Describe the primary activities conducted during this grant and explain any discrepancies between the activities conducted from those that were proposed. Outcomes Describe progress towards achieving the project outcomes as proposed. and briefly explain any discrepancies between your results compared to what was anticipated. Provide any further information (such as unexpected outcomes) important for understanding project activities and outcome results. 1) For DENR- BMB, the in- country services provided assistance in the conduct of 1 training for 38 NIPAS Management Staff and DENR Regional Staff on Marine Ecosystems and Processes. The six- day intensive hands- on training workshop focused on the marine ecosystems and ocean processes to build the participants capacities in managing their NIPAS MPAs effectively. Participants learned, through a mixture of interactive lectures, exercises and fieldwork, the five modules on oceanographic processes and environments, biology of marine fish, ecology on marine invertebrates, watersheds, coastal habitats and connectivity, and monitoring considerations for MPAs. Ten mentors from DENR were also trained to eventually roll- out the training program in the Philippines for sustainability. This is part of the government- to- government partnership between the Philippine and United States, following the DENR Multi- Year Capacity Building Framework for NIPAS Managers and Staff. 2) For DA- BFAR, the in- country coordination services supported 1 training on the Visible Infrared Imaging
Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) night light boat detection for BFAR enforcement staff as part of strengthening BFAR s measures against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, 2 outreaches to the local government units and to the general public on the VIIRS and 3 back- to- back- to- back training on the Ecosystems Approach to Fisheries Management to BFAR provincial fisheries officers. 2.1) A 2- day workshop was conducted for 54 Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Central and Regional Offices staff to learn more about the VIIRS night light boat detection and its uses for fishery closures, marine protected areas, municipal waters, exclusive economic zones transgressions, among others. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration s Earth Observation Group developed these VIIRS products for applications to fisheries management, using data generated from a satellite, primarily meant for weather purposes, to detect boats that uses night lights for fishing. Under this government- to- government partnership among the three agencies, three alert services were set up for the seasonal fishery closures in Zamboanga, Palawan and the Visayan Sea. Daily alerts are received by BFAR from NOAA on detected boats within the delineated closure areas that BFAR uses for their regulatory and enforcement work. Alert services are also set up for the 10.1 and 15 kilometer stretch from the coastlines to detect boats using night lights that encroach on municipal waters. Through the workshop, NOAA trained 54 BFAR staff on how the VIIRS products are developed and how these can be used to protect and conserve fishery resources using information available daily as well as aggregated annual summaries of detections. BFAR Assistant Director Drusila Esther E. Bayate says that these are scientific tools that are made simple but practical to use for managing the resources as well as for evaluating policies. To disseminate the use of this technology for addressing IUU fishing, an information session was also held for select local government units with operational enforcement teams and a public lecture for the stakeholders in general was also conducted. These were attended by 25 participants from 15 local government units and 59 participants, respectively. The in- country coordination services also facilitated the conducted of NOAA s Earth Observation Group, Dr. Christopher Elvidge, in field data collection in four fishing ports on the night lights being used in the country. 2.2) The in- country coordination services also coordinated and supported the three Essential EAFM training workshops for BFAR Provincial Fisheries Officers and Staff (PFO), using customized modules on EAFM. For these three back- to- back trainings for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao from April 11 through 29, BFAR PFOs were trained on the whys and what of EAFM, principles of EAFM, the planning processes from the formation of the EAFM Team, developing the Fisheries Management Unit, to identifying issues, vision, goals, objectives and management actions, leading to a sample EAFM plan for an appropriate fisheries management unit. These capacity- building activities were meant to enhance the knowledge and skills of PFOs and also to equip them to provide assistance to local government units as well as other stakeholders. The total participants are 85 composed of 26 participants from the Luzon Cluster, 29 participants from the Visayas Cluster and 30 participants from the Mindanao Cluster. The Philippine Fisheries Code, as amended by Republic Act No. 10654, mandates the EAFM as an approach to sustainably managing fisheries and marine resources. EAFM, originally developed under the Food and Agriculture Organizations Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries and rolled out under the USAID- supported Coral Triangle, considers all three components: ecological well- being, human well- being and good governance. In the Philippines, most aspects of the EAFM are already being implemented through the different programs of BFAR, together with key stakeholders, such as their seasonal fishery closures and blue- swimming crab management, among others. 3) In June 2016, the in- country coordination services also provided support to the DENR- BMB Month of the Ocean activity on the Hands- on- ARMS or (Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures) outreach to about 100 school children in Mabini, Batangas. One set of ARMS previously deployed in the Verde Island Passage under the government- to- government The views and conclusions contained partnership in this document was retrieved are those of for the authors information and should and not be education interpreted as purposes. representing Using
ARMS and crypto- biota, the outreach is meant to spread awareness on marine biodiversity and raise up local champions among the community. All planned activities were carried out through the assistance of the in- country coordination services of the NOAA- USAID partnership in the Philippines as follows: Activity / Outcome Coral - Outreach/ Education/ Technical Assistance - # people reached # people reached - Current 261 # people reached - Grant Completion 261 3. Lessons Learned Describe the key lessons learned from this project, such as the least and most effective conservation practices or notable aspects of the project s methods, monitoring, or results. How could other conservation organizations adapt similar strategies to build upon some of these key lessons about what worked best and what did not? For this grant, some of the lessons learned are as follows: a) In providing technical assistance and support to local partners, it is important that the needs of the local partners must be the primary consideration and rationale for such assistance. It is thus important to understand well the bigger context within which such partnership is carried out. Such responsiveness allows for a smooth implementation of government- to- government partnerships and yield concrete results and benefits to local partners. b) In doing partnership work, it is important to build trust and open avenues of communications at all times. This allows for a harmonious working relationship and an optimal result of the partnership. c) Customized training materials are better suited and more effective, rather than generic training materials. Local partners learn more effectively and readily see the potential application of their learning from the training to benefit the natural resources that they are managing. 4. Dissemination Briefly identify any dissemination of project results and/or lessons learned to external audiences, such as the public or other conservation organizations. Specifically outline any management uptake and/or actions resulting from the project and describe the direct impacts of any capacity building activities. The project results of the NOAA- USAID partnership with the Philippines, that was facilitated by the in- country coordination services, were shared through the Environmental Bulletin of USAID/Philippines. 5. Project Documents Include in your final programmatic report, via the Uploads section of this task, the following: 2-10 representative photos from the project. Photos need to have a minimum resolution of 300 dpi. For each uploaded photo, provide a photo credit and brief description below; Report publications, Power Point (or other) presentations, GIS data, brochures, videos, outreach tools, press releases, media coverage; Any project deliverables per the terms of your grant agreement. Photo 1: During the night light boat detection training workshop, BFAR Asst. Director Atty. Benjamin Tabios highlights the importance of use of night light boat detection alert services created for BFAR under the government to government partnership between the Philippines BFAR and USAID/Philippines and US NOAA. Alett Nunez, March 2016
Photo 2: DENR NIPAS MPA participants do an exercise on ocean processes during the Workshop on Marine Ecosystems. Alett Nunez, April 2016. POSTING OF FINAL REPORT: This report and attached project documents may be shared by the Foundation and any Funding Source for the Project via their respective websites. In the event that the Recipient intends to claim that its final report or project documents contains material that does not have to be posted on such websites because it is protected from disclosure by statutory or regulatory provisions, the Recipient shall clearly mark all such potentially protected materials as PROTECTED and provide an explanation and complete citation to the statutory or regulatory source for such protection.