Logit and principal component analyses of the management of marine protected areas in North-Eastern Iloilo, Philippines

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are considered a common tool for the protection of coastal, marine and fishery resources. Recently, literature on fishery management has been paying attention to the importance of the social dimensions of MPAs and their impacts on MPA success. This paper presents an overview of the management of MPAs in the region of North-Eastern Iloilo, Philippines, and examines the interaction between the civil society and market forces of different institutional arrangements. Using the logit and principal component analyses, the paper shows that the conflicts between economic actors are still in existence today, and knowledge appears as a key factor for evaluating MPA success. Moreover, having MPAs does not seem to bring the communities any other benefit than the stated objectives, such as food security and marine conservation. The paper also discusses how contrasting objectives and expectations from various stakeholders could exacerbate conflict in the management of MPAs.