Protecting priority coastal and marine ecosystems to conserve globally significant Endangered, Threatened, and Protected marine wildlife in southern Mindanao, Philippines Strengthen management effectiveness and address under-representation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) designed to conserve ETP marine wildlife and sustain ecosystem services for human well-being. Note: Disbursement data provided is cumulative and covers disbursement made by the project Agency. The project beneficiaries will include the following coastal communities living in the barangays adjacent to the three targeted project sites:   · Mayo Bay lies within the territorial jurisdiction of both Tarragona Municipal Local Government Unit (MLGU) and Mati City Local Government Unit (CLGU). The municipality of Tarragona is composed of 10 barangays, three of which are coastal (i.e., Brgy. Lucatan, Central and Jovellar). The Mati side of Mayo Bay is composed of 6 coastal barangays (i.e., Brgy Tagabakid, Mayo, Don Enrique Lopez, Dahican, Bobon, and Lawigan). The fishing communities in these coastal barangays typically employ hook and line, nets (pokot, pamanti, etc), fish traps and spears.  · Pujada Bay lies within the territorial jurisdiction of Mati City and is bounded by 6 coastal barangays - Tagabakid, Mayo, Don Enrique Lopez, Dahican, Bobon, and Lawigan. About half of the working age population in these coastal barangays are engaged in farming, 30% are engaged in fishing, and the rest are into fish vending, carpentry, small-scale business, mat weaving and bag making.  · Malita – Don Marcelino covers the municipal waters of the Malita LGU and Don Marcelino LGU. The Municipality of Malita is composed of 30 barangays, 10 of which are coastal. These include Buhangin, Culaman, Fishing Village, Lacaron, Lais, Mana, New Argao, Poblacion, Tingolo, and Tubalan. The coastal barangays have a population of 44,462, representing 38% of the population of the municipality. The Municipality of Don Marcelino has 15 barangays, 10 of which are coastal. These include Talagutong, Kinanga, Lawa, Lanao, Lapuan, Calian, North Lamidan, South Lamidan, Linadasan and Kiobog. The coastal barangays have a population of around 31,637, representing 71% of the population of the municipality. The IPs - comprising the B’laan and Manobo tribes - have ancestral water claims in the coastal waters of Don Marcelino. Most of the IPs are into fishing using motorized and non-motorized boats, farming, and nito basket weaving.    The project is primarily supporting improvements in the management of the municipal waters in the project-targeted areas to ensure that the existing environmental, fisheries and conservation legislation and regulations are more consistently applied, regularly monitored and actively enforced. The project does not envisage changing the prevailing legal natural resource use rights in these municipal waters (unless by community consensus).     However many fisherfolk have been conducting illegal activities in these municipal waters (including in strictly protected marine sanctuaries) for many years, with no sanction or repercussions, and may lose access to these illegally harvested fisheries resources as a consequence of improved management regimes supported by the project. To offset the impacts of this loss, the project will target the delivery of the following socio-economic benefits to affected fishing communities living in the coastal barangays of the targeted project sites:   · developing entrepreneurial opportunities (e.g. training, seed capital funding, equipment, technical backstopping) for small community-based businesses to deliver goods, supplies and services to the biodiversity-friendly nature-based tourism (NBT) and fishing-related industries.  · Creating employment opportunities for community members from biodiversity-friendly: (i) NBT enterprises; (ii) ancillary NBT support businesses; (iii) fish processing businesses; (iv) marine monitoring and enforcement; (iv) marine and coastal habitat restoration and rehabilitation; and (iv) habitat and marine wildlife monitoring and research.  · Strengthening the individual skills and capacities of community members to improve their employment and career opportunities in biodiversity friendly industries.  · diversifying income streams from biodiversity friendly enterprises to help strengthen community resilience to episodic events such as storm surges, flooding and global pandemics.  · Leveraging training, funding, technical assistance and/or investment support from private and public sector projects and programmes for communities to develop biodiversity-friendly livelihood enterprises.  · Assisting community members to access micro-finance or small loans for sustainable biodiversity-friendly livelihoods.   · Building the awareness of local fishing communities, coastal tourism businesses and recreational users about the economic importance of conserving ETP MW and their habitats and promoting their active involvement in monitoring and conservation efforts.    During the project implementation phase, a Process Framework will be prepared to guide the engagement and participatory process to be followed to ensure that affected stakeholders (i.e. those affected by restrictions in access to natural resources) participate in the planning, establishment, management and development of the MPAs. The Process Framework will also clearly define: (i) the eligibility criteria of affected persons or groups for project-supported livelihood development assistance; and (ii) the methods and procedures by which the affected coastal communities will identify and choose the most appropriate type of 'livelihood development' support to be delivered by the project. The development of the Process Framework will specifically incorporate gender concerns to optimize livelihood development opportunities for women.     The project will work closely with relevant government agencies, and will primarily focus on the delivery of socio-economic benefits through accredited local Peoples Organizations (POs) and/or Community-Based Organizations (CBOs).    The project will deliver social and economic benefits to at least 14,307 individuals (of whom at least 4,848 are women) at the national, regional, provincial and municipal levels who are engaged in project activities (including training capacity development, MPA management, enforcement, education and awareness-raising). The project will further enable direct employment and livelihood development opportunities to at least 140 individuals (of whom at least 55 are women) from marginalised coastal fisher communities, whose opportunities for upliftment and prosperity are otherwise limited.