Northern samar: Northern Samar's provincial government is eyeing loans from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to finance key projects to strengthen the province's rich marine resources.

According to Philippines News Agency, the Northern Samar Food Security and Sustainable Economic Development (FSSED) cluster convened on Friday to finalize project proposals to avail of the ADB loan facility, said Jhon Allen Berbon, head of the Provincial Economic Development and Investment Promotions Office (PEDIPO). The projects include constructing deep-sea ports, ice plants, and cold storage facilities; providing adequate power supply systems to reduce postharvest losses; supplying fish harvesters and fishing vessels; and promoting value-adding enterprises, such as canned and bottled sardines, fish sauce production, and salt farming ventures.

The proposals are based on the Provincial Agriculture and Fishery Modernization Plan 2024-2030, focusing on irrigation infrastructure development, sustainable aquaculture and fisheries modernization, and deep-sea port development, Berbon mentioned in a phone interview. "We formally expressed the intent to avail of the USD400 million loan facility recently announced by ADB, which aims to support the restoration of marine ecosystems and the strengthening of the country's blue economy. Through this loan support, we hope to further strengthen our rich coastal and marine resources," he added.

The ADB announced last month that the Philippines will receive a USD400 million loan to support efforts to make the local agriculture sector more sustainable through 2030. The coastal province of Northern Samar is endowed with rich marine resources and expansive agricultural lands. Berbon noted that despite this potential, the province continues to face long-standing challenges, most notably, inadequate irrigation infrastructure and significant postharvest losses in the fisheries sector due to the lack of essential logistics and processing facilities.