Batangas City, Batangas — Malampaya Foundation (MFI) participated by signing as witness to a five (5)-province covenant signing on March 29, 2017 to strengthen cooperation to protect the Verde Island Passage (VIP).
The event, organised by Conservation International Philippines, was highlighted by the signing by the governors of Batangas, Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, Romblon and Marinduque, DA-BFAR, DENR, PNP and the PCG of the VIP-wide MPA and law enforcement network.
The agreement aims to "render mutual collaboration and cooperation in promoting conservation, protection, and improvement of the biodiversity and coastal and marine resources of the Verde Island Passage through the formal establishment of a passage-wide Marine Protected Area Network and Law Enforcement Network".
MFI is active in two of the five provinces spanning the 1 million-hectare+ VIP, touted as the “center of the center of shore fish biodiversity in the world”. MFI conservation sites in the VIP have become top performers in marine protected area management and law enforcement awards achieved within three years of program implementation.
