Shadow Economies in Palawan’s Live Reef Fish Trade

Dane Erlo Matorres  (PhD candidate)

Project description/thesis abstract:

Live reef fish trade (LRFT) is a lucrative industry in the tropic region that is significantly linked to overexploitation of target species and coral reef health. The increasing demand is mainly influenced by China, but institutions failed to sustainably regulate it. Philippines is a major source country for the trade, particularly Palawan province with leopard coral grouper (Plectropomus leopardus) as the main commodity exported. Since its peak in the 1990s, LRFT has been viewed as being ecologically unsustainable and damaging yet several attempts at regulation failed due to the persistence of strong social networks among fishers, traders, and local regulators.


However, studies have yet to describe and examine the extent of shadow economies (generally referred to as informal economies) that largely characterize LRFT in Palawan. We still have limited information about the roles, motivations, and relations among value chain actors, including the practices, mechanisms and processes that sustain and reproduce these types of economies over time. Another gap is the extent to which shadow economies are embedded in the formal economies of LRFT, and how this interaction shapes regulatory regimes.
The study will be conducted in Southern Palawan, one of the main contributors to Palawan’s fishery export with largely agricultural economies and with presence of diverse cultural and indigenous communities. Southern Palawan is beset with security challenges due to weak presence of state institutions, notably illicit border trades in several ports with access to Southern Philippines and Malaysia. 

By grounding LRFT in shadow economies, and using household and perception surveys and ethnographic methodologies, this study seeks to provide useful insights and open new dimensions on the following discussions: (i) interaction between shadow and formal fishery economies; (ii) political legitimacy of regulatory institutions; (iii) fisherfolk vulnerability and well-being; and (iv) fisheries management.

Meet the researcher

Qualifications: BA in Political Science, Master of Arts in Sociology

Dane Erlo Matorres is an early career researcher who has published several articles on coral restoration governance in the Philippines. He has worked with civil society organizations and national government agencies on key fisheries policy reforms and institutional capacity building initiatives. In between fieldwork and writing, Erlo enjoys long runs and city walks to explore cozy bars, beaches and heritage sites.

Email: DaneErlo.C.Matorres@student.uts.edu.au 

Supervisor(s):
  • Professor Michael Fabinyi
  • Professor Kate Barclay