Fishers in Palu have gone back to the sea (c) FAO Indonesia/Widyawati

FAO with support from the Provincial Maritime and Fisheries Agency, Palu City and Donggala Regency, today (28/8) distributed nets and cooler boxes to 2,650 fishing households spread across 69 villages and 15 sub-districts in Palu and Donggala.

 Director General of Capture Fisheries and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) Zulficar Muchtar, Regional Secretary of Hidayat Lamakarate Province, Deputy Regent of Donggala M Yassin and Assistant FAO Representative in Indonesia - Ageng Herianto Program presented at the handover ceremony. 

Deputy Regent of Donggala M Yassin stated that fishers in Donggala still needed suport for the equipments. FAO's aids have helped fishermen to restore their livelihoods. "Fishermen in Donggala have back to work. But they still need support for the fishing gears," he said.

Assistant FAO Representative in Indonesia- program Ageng Herianto said that FAO is committed to help Indonesia in the times of disaster and crisis. "Families of farmers and fishermen are always our concern,"

FAO’s component on food security with a budget of USD 1 million is part of a larger programme financed by the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to assist the Government respond to the earthquake and tsunami. The FAO component was designed to restore food production and boost the livelihoods of vulnerable households affected by disaster, and it targeted the most vulnerable and affected of more than 70,000 people who rely on agriculture and fisheries.  The selection of households was completed in close collaboration with local government and village authorities.

Bright future

Abtar, 41, the chairman of the fishermen’s group in Loli Pesua in the Donggala regency, said that three months after the tsunami, fishermen in his village had already gone back to the sea. However, their fishing gear was destroyed so they have been using whatever was available for fishing.

The cool box and net from FAO have helped him and his group to fish, however challenges still lie ahead, in part because the fishing sites in the coral reefs were destroyed by the tsunami. Some people still need boats to resume fishing. However, Abtar who has been fishing for 30 years expressed optimism despite the great challenges ahead. “We have to go back to the sea, whatever it costs“, he added.