TACLOBAN CITY — The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in the region will conduct the 2026 Updating of List of Aquaculture Farms (ULAF) from June 29 to August 7, 2026, as part of a nationwide effort to establish an updated statistical sampling frame for the agency’s quarterly aquaculture surveys.
The 2026 ULAF aims to update the status of the 215,390 aquaculture farms recorded during the 2023 listing and identify new aquafarms that are currently operating or temporarily closed.
The activity seeks to generate reliable, timely, and updated data that will support the production of official statistics and inform policy and planning in the aquaculture sector.
Information to be collected during the census includes the type of aquafarm; name and address of the farm; details of the operator, hired manager, or caretaker; legal form of organization; water environment; top five species cultured; and farm area and/or volume.
The 2026 ULAF has been reviewed and cleared under the Statistical Survey Review and Clearance System (SSRCS), a mechanism implemented by the PSA pursuant to Rule 28 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 10625.
PSA-8 urged all aquafarm operators covered by the census to cooperate by providing accurate and truthful information to ensure the availability of quality data for the aquaculture industry.
The agency also assured respondents that all information collected will be treated with strict confidentiality in accordance with the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173).
Data gathered through statistical inquiries, surveys, and censuses are considered privileged communication and cannot be used for taxation purposes or as evidence in any court, tribunal, or administrative proceeding.
PSA said the results of the census will be released only in the form of aggregated statistics and summary tables.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
