The 47-hectare Navotas Fish Port Complex (NFPC) is set to undergo a P14-billion rehabilitation and upgrade over the next three years to transform it into an integrated center for various agricultural commodities, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA) .
Set for completion by 2023, the project involves the expansion and elevation of unloading stations, repair of road networks and drainage systems as well as the establishment of modern cold storage facilities.
Agriculture secretary William Dar said modernization of the NFPC is very crucial as 70 percent of the fish supply of Metro Manila passes through the complex.
“This is one of the flagship programs of the government, and hopefully it is completed before the end of the term of the President… With proper design, the port is expected to serve not only the fishery sector but all sectors of Philippine agriculture,” Dar said.
Dar said the cold storage facilities will also ensure sufficient supply even during calamities and lean season. The expansion will also accommodate more boats, thus increasing supply of aquatic products.
Meanwhile, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA) general manager Glen Pangapalan, said the agency is keen on tapping other private entities to build similar facilities in other areas.
NFPC is the premier fish center in the Philippines and one of the largest in Asia and is under the jurisdiction, control, and supervision of PFDA.
NFPC was constructed in 1976 through an P88 million loan from the Asian Development Bank.
The facility is currently managed by Frabelle Cold Storage Corp. but is under the jurisdiction, control and supervision of PFDA, an attached agency of the DA.
In 2018, the National Economic and Development Authority’s Investment Coordination Committee approved the NFPC’s rehabilitation whose funds are expected to be sourced from loans as well as equity from the government.
The rehabilitation of NFPC is not expected to disrupt the operations of the port as it will be done in phases.
Dar said the DA expects to improve the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUUF) and sustainable management of the country’s waters through the newly-developed electronic catch documentation and traceability (e-CDT) system.
A partnership project between BFAR, the USAID Oceans and Fisheries Partnership and the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, the e-CDT system will document key information about harvest, processing and transportation of fisheries products to enable traceability from harvest and point of origin to its destination, in order to eliminate the chances of illegally—caught fish from entering the market.
