Life of A Seaweed Farmer

In the island province of Tawi-Tawi, the beautiful sunrise beams hope along the pristine coastal communities of Sibutu and Sitangkai – one peculiar thing that Rowena needs to begin her daily life as a seaweed farmer.

Rowena, 49 years old and mother of seven, prepares seaweed seedlings and ties plastic floaters to a polypropylene rope. Later on, she swims in the sea to harvest and plant new breed for the season.

Seaweed farmers like Rowena heavily depend on this type of farming as a source of livelihood for the family. In fact, two of her children finished college education because of their small seaweed plantation on the sea. At present, their sustainability as a family is still anchored on this economic activity.

Eucheumatoids are tropical red seaweeds that she and her husband have cultivated in the past 30 years. It is a common source of carrageenan, an additive that is commercially used for medicine, cosmetics, and food nowadays.

Sitangkai and Sibutu residents mainly rely on fishing and seaweed farming as major economic opportunities. However, when meager income from these do not suffice bringing food on the table, Rowena and other families could barely survive.

“This is our work [seaweed farming] every day and we cannot escape from this. If seaweeds will die, we collect woods, instead. In our life, we face many challenges.” said Rowena, a seaweed farmer in Sibutu in the past 30 years.

Challenges of Seaweed Farming

Seaweeds industry is at the heart of Tawi-Tawi’s aquaculture sector which produces 294,595 metric tons per year. In 2021, the Philippines produced around 1.3 million metric tons of seaweeds, wherein 87% is produced by the provinces within Mindanao and Palawan, including Tawi-Tawi. This made Philippines ranks fourth in global seaweed production valued at between USD200 to USD250 million annually.

Despite the lucrative commodity for seaweeds, farmers face the perennial dilemma of insufficient source of power and energy in these islands – less than 30% electrification rate and less than 24-hour daily electricity service. This results to low productivity, poor quality production, unpredictable pricing, and lack of market innovation.

Mindanao State University Tawi-Tawi Director for Research Dr. Sitti Zayda Halun said that there is a need for additional investment [power and energy] so that seaweed processing plants can be established.

“Before, we were number one in seaweed production in the world, but we are now exceeded by Indonesia. Having processing plants, at least we could produce seaweed chips which the food industry can use,” Dr. Halun added.

The RETS Project

In 2019, MinDA facilitated Renewable Energy Technology for Seaweed Value-Added in Tawi-Tawi or RETS Project that is eyed to benefit 3,500 seaweed farming families in this part of Mindanao.

Funded by the European Union (EU) through its Access to Sustainable Energy Programme (EU-ASEP), and implemented jointly by the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the RETS project aims to generate a total combined capacity of 1.650MW for the two island municipalities, through two hybrid solar-diesel power plants with an integrated battery energy storage system (BESS).

“The solar project can truly help us seaweed farmers, especially during rainy season when we cannot dry our harvests,” said Jay Abdu Razid, also a seaweed farmer in Sitangkai.

In addition, the ultimate goal is for homes and remote areas in the islands to be powered 24/7, children could study well at night, farmers will have improved productivity and innovations for higher income generation, and a  more sustainable seaweed industry.

Powering Partnerships

With strong partnership and commitment from the Bangsamoro Regional Government, Provincial Government of Tawi-Tawi, the Municipalities of Sibutu and Sitangkai, Mindanao State University Tawi-Tawi College of Technology and Oceanography, Tawi-Tawi Electric Cooperative, and Association of Island Electric Cooperatives-Island Light and Water Development Corporation (AIEC-ILAW), the RETS provides a light of hope towards a more inclusive, resilient, sustainable life for the people of Tawi-Tawi.

Sitangkai Municipal Mayor Hon. Tiblan C. Ahaja said that his local government is deeply thankful for the project that will surely help the seaweed farmers in his villages. Meanwhile, MinDA as one of the implementing institutions of the project strongly believes in the potential of the project to change lives and make a difference.

“Through the initiative, we have helped to create jobs and livelihood for communities, promote the use of sustainable sources, foster peace and development in conflict affected areas, and build a better future for all Filipinos especially those in Mindanao,” MinDA Secretary Maria Belen S. Acosta said.

The Collective Aspiration

Truly, the RETS Project is a proof-of-concept for the deployment of renewable energy sources in geographically-isolated, disadvantaged, and marginalized areas while facilitating green energy transition not only in Tawi-Tawi, but also in the whole island region of Mindanao.

Like most residents of Sitangkai and Sibutu, Rowena dreams for a reliable and affordable source of electricity in her household and neighboring villages.

For her, sustainable electricity means having a well-lit house for her children to study at night to power their goals, an “ice candy” bought from a fridge of a “sari-sari store” for a glass of cold water to fight extreme heat, and a seaweed drying facility to increase  income so she can buy decent basic needs and sustain her family.

“If seaweeds will thrive, we will not collect woods to sell. I’m really fighting for my children to be educated through agal-agal [seaweeds] because I don’t want them to be like us who sorely struggles,” Rowena shared. (PR/MinDA)