EVALUATION

about its enforcement for lack of additional knowledge and information, such as, the methods
of reducing opportunism by segregating friendly and destructive fishing gears, encouraging all
fishers to ensure compliance, and motivating sustained enforcement to reduce speculative
fishing. All these information could be provided by the project’s ongoing studies if completed as
scheduled.
Evaluation Question 11: To what extent and under what conditions did social
capital and leadership catalyze/create movement of LGUs from startup fisheries
management to EAFM? The project has measured social capital in terms of the presence of
leaders/political will, local champions, and the ability to resolve conflicts among inter-LGUs.
ECOFISH Project partnered with League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) to support
the training of newly elected Mayors (also called ONE-M Program) in eight MKBA sites. It
supported the participation of five (5) current and past “champion” Mayors to mentor newly
elected Mayor on environmental governance, particularly in coastal resources and fisheries
management. ONE-M Program has aimed to bring together all concerned Municipal Mayors to
build a network of cooperation and resource sharing in the form of a social capital that
produces improved foundations for EAFM for the common good of all fishing households and
communities. This program has been successful in producing “champion” Mayors involved in
ECOFISH and/or FISH Project, or part of MOREFISH champions formed by FISH Project and
LMP in the past. In supporting ONE-M Program, the project was able to reach out to other
LGUs outside of eight MKBAs to share and promote best practices. Apart from training, these
LGUs have gained additional knowledge and information through site-specific case studies that
could enhance local policies and plans for EAFM.
This social capital formation has shown initial positive effects. The inter-LGU collaboration in
SN MKBA exhibited the best example of how joint action can lead to evolution of stronger
strategic alliances and additional resources for coastal resources and fisheries management.
Recently, this collaboration forged a new MOU among the members to expand its inter-LGU
alliances and clarify the members’ financial contributions for coastal/marine conservation and
fisheries management. In VIP MKBA, the inter-LGU collaboration resulted in effective
enforcement of seasonal closure of pelagic fish in Balayan Bay, as noted above. In addition, San
Fernando City Fisheries and Agricultural Resources Management Council (FARMC) included
the concept of integrated aquatic and fisheries management in LG MKBA in the council’s local
development planning process.
Evidently, the project’s social capital and “champions” formation effort has been instrumental in
catalyzing the 19 LGUs to move from the traditional fisheries management to EAFM Level 2
status. The inter-LGU collaboration in SN, VIP and LG MKBAs showed how joint action could
lead to improved management capacity of LGUs in these MKBAs.
However, the social capital formation has so far been significant at the national and municipal
levels. Community-based constituency for EAFM has remained limited due to concentration of
the current interventions at the municipal level. The shortage of counterpart “champions” and
local leaders at the barangay level (i.e., Barangay Captains, Barangay Environmental Law
Enforcers) has constrained the effective advocacy campaign and enforcement initiatives carried
out or supported by the project at the site level. For instance, FGD data of fishers showed a
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