Declaration of Policy.
Section 2
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is hereby declared the policy of the State to provide priority attention and support to professionalize the practice of the fisheries profession in the Philippines, which will he beneficial to sustain the food security and economic development of the country, and to upgrade the standards of fisheries education. These policies are provided for in Republic Act No. 8550, otherwise known as the "Fisheries Code of 1998" and Republic Act No. 8435, otherwise known as the "Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act of 1997". Pursuant to this national policy, the government shall: (1) provide a program to set up an appropriate and healthy environment for the practice of the fisheries profession; and (2) establish quality standards for fisheries professionals that will guide fisheries schools/fisheries colleges, through the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), for the development of curricular programs that will attain the high standards of the profession.