Seaweeds Jobs Value-Chain Analysis in Zamboanga Peninsula, Philippines, 2015

Seaweeds, an important commodity in the Zamboanga Peninsula region, provide income and employment to 175,000 marginalized coastal dwellers. This Job value chain study looks into the flight of the affected coastal farmers who are economically at the disadvantage; determine the job opportunities and practical recommendation to create more and better jobs in Mindanao. The full time job in the entire value chain were computed based on the survey and focus group discussion of seaweed farmers, barangay traders, consolidators, big traders and processor. Seaweed farmers in Zamboanga Peninsula region cultivates an average of ¼ hectare with an average production of 5,646.5 kg per cropping. The computed average production cost is P 2.75 per kg of seaweeds sold at P5.00 per kg. Seaweed farming is a family-based enterprise with a total of 0.643 full time employments (FTE) per hectare. The major constraints for creating more and better job includes: lack of good quality planting materials to increase productivity; lack of cheap and ready access credit for farmers; poor post- harvest facilities such as drying and storage resulting to low quality raw dried seaweeds; poor roads resulting to high overhead cost of farmers. To create additional job in the seaweed industry, effort shall be geared toward establishment of seaweed gene bank and nurseries; conduct of research and development program on disease and climate change resistant varieties; development of food and non-food high-value added products from seaweeds through research; provision of financing windows for small and marginalized seaweed farmers; opportunity of crop assistance and insurance programs; establishment of a seaweed quality certification system; government assisted processing facilities particularly additional stilt dryers, moisture content detector and clean storage areas free from contaminations. Finally, establishments of social enterprises or cottage industries through inter –agency collaboration on value addition of seaweed products.